Chinese Deputy Minister of Transport, Gao Hongfeng arrived in the country by special invitation of the Minister of Ports, Aviation, Irrigation and Water Management, Chamal Rajapaksa. Mr. Gao Hongfeng made a special inspection tour on Monday of the Hambantota Port Development Project of the Sri Lanka Ports Authority (SLPA).

Chairman of SLPA, Dr. Priyath Bandu Wickrama, receiving the Chinese Deputy Minister of Transport at the  Hambantota Port Development Project, conveyed the country’s gratitude to the Chinese government for their invaluable contribution and assistance in the construction of the project.

Chinese Deputy Minister of Transport commended the current progress in the construction of the Hambantota Port Project. The Minister also held lengthy discussions of  future progress of construction of the project with the Chinese joint consortium, the China Harbour Engineering Company Limited and Syno Hydro Corporation Limited,  which  are engaged in the construction work of the project.

The Hambantota Port Development Project commenced on January 15 last year with an estimated construction cost of US$361 million. Currently, the Coffer Dam Construction, Caisson Construction of Service Quay Wall, Casting of Concrete Armour and the Construction of  Core Layer in Beak Waters of the project  have been fully  completed, while  continuous construction have also been  maintained with timely construction schedules.
(DM18062009)