SL’s first cable car project to reach completion in 18 months: SLTDA

• Land allocated on a 30-year lease
• SLDTA confirms capital investment will be transferred to govt. after end of lease
• Says project is in line with international construction, safety, environmental and quality standards

Sri Lanka’s first cable car project is gearing up to kick off soon and will reach completion within 18 months from the date of receiving all approvals, the Sri Lanka Tourism Development Authority (SLTDA) said.

The Cable Car Project, which is an initiative of Outdoor Engineering Lanka (Pvt.) Ltd and facilitated by the SLTDA, will allow Sri Lankans to offer cable car experiences for the 
first time.

An MoU was signed between Outdoor Engineering Lanka and the SLTDA on December 9, to allocate land on a 30-year lease for the project. The cable car line, which will span a distance of nearly four kilometres, will connect Nanu Oya and Nuwara Eliya town.

The SLTDA shared that the investment value of the project currently stands at Euro 55 million (US $ 62.15 million) and would be implemented under the build, own, operate and transfer(BOOT) model.

In a statement to the media the SLTDA confirmed that according to the agreement of the project, the total capital investment would be transferred to the government after a period of 30 years.

The proposal was submitted by Outdoor Engineering Lanka (Pvt.) Ltd and its foreign partner Doppelmayr Cable Car, an entity based in Austria, back in 2019 for approval.

“It gives everyone at Sri Lanka Tourism immense pride to be involved in this project, which is indicative of the progressive attitude we have adopted towards the future of the island and its tourism sector,” said Sri Lanka Tourism Chairperson Kimarli Fernando commenting on the project.

She added that the SLTDA together with the relevant line agencies enabled a “high level of competency and efficiency” in keeping with international construction, safety, environmental and quality standards. 

“As a result of an effective and healthy collaboration of all line agencies involved, it allowed for complete compliance with all necessary regulatory frameworks, allowing for greater efficiency and transparency,” she added.
Furthermore, the SLTDA shared that all cable car equipment would be supplied and installed by the partner organisation of Outdoor Engineers AG, Doppelmayr Seilbahnen GmbH of Austria, the current world leader in cable car manufacturing and installations, having constructed over 15,100 installations. Outdoor Engineers AG comes to the project with over 30 years of experience in the ropeway industry and has been involved in over 30 cable car installations across the world, including Sentosa Cable Car in Singapore.