Cabinet approves operation of currency exchange counters at BIA arrivals terminal

Colombo, Jan. 13 (Daily Mirror) - Currency exchange counters have been established within the customs area of the arrivals terminal at the Bandaranaike International Airport (BIA), Katunayake, to facilitate the foreign exchange requirements of arriving passengers.

With the redevelopment of the arrivals terminal under the airport’s development programme, a need arose to relocate the existing currency exchange counters. However, as no agreement could be reached on the monthly fees applicable for operating the counters at the newly allocated locations, the Airports and Aviation Services (Sri Lanka) (Private) Limited terminated the existing contractual agreements.

Subsequently, bids were invited from institutions authorised by the Central Bank of Sri Lanka to operate foreign currency exchange counters at the new locations in the arrivals terminal for a period of three years, under a limited competitive bidding process.

Following the evaluation of five bids, the High-Level Standing Procurement Committee submitted its recommendations. Based on these recommendations, the Cabinet of Ministers approved a proposal submitted by the Minister of Ports and Civil Aviation to award contracts for the operation of five currency exchange counters for a period of three years.

Accordingly, contracts have been awarded as follows:

• Counter No. 04 – Commercial Bank of Ceylon PLC for Rs. 972.77 million, plus applicable taxes
• Counter No. 05 – Bank of Ceylon for Rs. 877.14 million, plus applicable taxes
• Counter No. 06 – Thomas Cook Lanka (Pvt.) Ltd for Rs. 720.79 million, plus applicable taxes
• Counter No. 07 – Sampath Bank PLC for Rs. 646.64 million, plus applicable taxes
• Counter No. 08 – People’s Bank for Rs. 631.61 million, plus applicable taxes

The move is expected to enhance convenience for arriving passengers while ensuring a transparent and competitive process for the operation of foreign exchange services at the country’s main international gateway.