Adani to finance Sri Lankan Port project on its own, withdraws request for US DFC funding

Mumbai (The Uttam Hindu): The Adani Ports and Special Economic Zones (APSEZ) Ltd on Tuesday said it will use its own resources to fund a Sri Lankan port project and not seek US funding. In a stock exchange filing, Adani Ports said the project "is on track for commissioning by early next year”. “We would like to inform that Colombo West International Terminal (CWIT) project in Sri Lanka is progressing well and is on track for commissioning by early next year,” said the flagship Adani Group company. “The project will be financed through the company’s internal accruals and capital management plan. We have withdrawn our request for financing from the US Development Finance Corporation (DFC),” it added. In November last year, the US International Development Finance Corp agreed to provide a $553 million loan to support the development, construction, and operation of CWIT at the Port of Colombo in Sri Lanka. The CWIT is being developed by a consortium of Adani Ports, Sri Lankan conglomerate John Keells Holdings Plc, and the Sri Lanka Ports Authority (SLPA). The CWIT project was started in September 2021, when Adani Ports signed an agreement with the Sri Lanka Ports Authority and Sri Lankan conglomerate John Keells Holdings, pledging over $700 million to expand the capabilities of Colombo Port.

The CWIT will be Sri Lanka's largest and deepest container terminal, with a quay length of 1,400 metres and an alongside depth of 20 metres. The Port of Colombo is the largest and busiest trans-shipment port in the Indian Ocean and it has been operating at more than 90 per cent utilisation since 2021, signalling its need for additional capacity. The new terminal will cater to growing economies in the Bay of Bengal, taking advantage of Sri Lanka's prime position on major shipping routes and its proximity to these expanding markets. The annual cargo handling capacity of this new terminal is likely to exceed 3.2 million.