SL to continue negotiations with Adani Group to develop WCT, without Indian govt involvement: Gammanpila

The Sri Lankan Government will continue its negotiations with the Adani Group of Companies to develop the West Container Terminal (WCT) at the Colombo Port,  without Indian government’s involvement,  a Cabinet Minister said today (9).

Co-Cabinet spokesman Udaya Gammanpila said that the Sri Lankan government’s last week’s position that the Indian High Commission had cleared the proposal of the Adani Group to develop WCT was made on assumption.

He said that since India has previously nominated the Adani Group for the development of ECT, the government assumed that the same investment will continue.

His remarks came after a journalist sought a response to a comment by the Indian government spokesman that New Delhi had not cleared the proposal  as stated by Sri Lanka.

“Cabinet approval has been granted on 1. 2. 21 to develop the West Container Terminal of Colombo South Port as a private–public limited company in collaboration with the Sri Lanka Ports Authority and parties nominated by Indian and Japanese governments,” the Sri Lankan government said.

However an Indian government spokesman reacted to the statement denying the claim.

“Our high commission in Colombo has already conveyed to the Government of Sri Lanka that their media release on so far as the reference to the approval of the High Commission was concerned, is factually incorrect. We understand that the Government of Sri Lanka has engaged directly with investors on this project,’’ external affairs ministry spokesperson Anurag Srivastava said last week.

Mr Gammanpila explained that since only the location of the project was changed, the Sri Lankan government assumed that the Indian government was agreeable.

He said for the development of the ECT, the government hopes to take a local loan as there is a policy decision that no foreign loans will be taken.

However, a journalist raised the issue questioning which of the local banks could raise upto about 800 million US $ for the project.

“If a single bank cannot raise that amount a syndicate loan could be raised with a couple of banks”, Mr Gammanpila said.