සංවර්ධන News

[monson]

World’s second largest ilmenite operation to start here

World’s largest Zircon producer Iluka Resources Limited revealed on Tuesday in Colombo that it was planning to commence one of the largest mineral extraction operations in Sri Lanka from 2019.

“Once we clear the Environment Impact Assessment (EIA) we would like to start immediately since we want the proposed operation fast-tracked” said an upbeat Head of Resource Development of Australia based Iluka Resources Limited Simon Hay.

Iluka’s Hay expressed these views during his meeting with Minister of Industry and Commerce Rishad Bathiudeen joined by Iluka’s Sri Lanka Country Manager Robert M Tyler and General Manager Major Projects and Engineering at Iluka Resources Mr Gavin Swart.

Iluka Resources is based in Perth, Australia and is the largest zircon producer, supplying around one-third of world’s zircon volumes.

“We would like to accelerate our proposed project in Puttalam. We will invest a very significant amount in this project. Our initial investment alone is more than $540 million. The project will give direct employment to 500, and another 2500 indirect jobs. This large scale project in Puttalam can enhance Sri Lanka’s overall mineral industry profile.”

“After we commence production, we expect to supply no less than 700,000 tonnes ilmenite per year to the world’s four million tonne strong total supply-around 17% of total supply. This means Iluka’s Puttalam ilmenite operation will be only second to world’s largest ilmenite operation by Kenmare Resources in Mozambique.”

“In short, Iluka is ready to commence world’s second largest ilmenite operation in Puttalam by 2019. The proposed Puttalam operation is not really a short term project but a long term project-with a time span of 40 years.”

Minister Bathiudeen welcomed Iluka’s initiatives in Sri Lanka and said, “Iluka’s entry will no doubt enhance our mineral industry profile and boost it while supporting the industry reforms and FDI calls of our Unity government.”

- http://www.dailynews.lk/?q=2016/09/01/business/91988

 

[monson]

China ready to pump in over US $ 5bn in FDIs: envoy

China’s top diplomat in the country yesterday said that the world’s second largest economy is prepared to commit over US $ 5 billion in foreign direct investments (FDIs) over the medium to long term for special economic zones, if the Sri Lankan government is prepared to authorize them.

“We’re looking at the Economic Zone in Hambantota and in the Western Province and also some other provinces. We are looking to invest at least US $ 5 billion over the next three to five years if the government decides to go ahead,” Chinese Ambassador Yi Xianliang said.

Speaking at a bilateral trade discussion held at the National Chamber of Commerce of Sri Lanka (NCCSL) in Colombo, Xianliang noted that Chinese FDIs into Sri Lanka this year will run into several hundred million dollars.

Development Strategies and International Trade Minister Malik Samarawickrama had recently said that China had requested 15,000 acres of land in Hambantota to create an industrial park, which would create one million local jobs—coincidentally an election promise of the Sri Lankan government.

He had said that the government is in the process of finding a suitable plot of land in the southern Sri Lankan town, which already has a large Chinese influence with the development of the so far underutilized Hambantota port and Mattala airport.

Sri Lanka is an important point in China’s Maritime Silk Road, which is being developed to ensure its energy security from the oil fields of the Middle East to Chinese ports.

Xianliang assured that China has no opposition to letting companies from other countries, including India, from setting up operations within China-led projects.

“We welcome any third party to join Sri Lanka and China. We are not opposed to India or any other country. China already has many business relationships with India,” he said.

The Sri Lankan government is looking at setting up dozens of economic zones specializing in different industries across the island and is in talks with several countries including India, Japan and China to develop and manage these zones.

China is already the largest investor in Sri Lanka, owing to the US $ 1.4 billion Colombo International Financial City—previously known as the Colombo Port City—which will create additional US $ 8 billion in FDIs when the first phase is completed, and more FDIs years down the line.

The project had been halted when the current regime came into power in early 2015, citing inadequacies in environmental assessments conducted before starting the project.

However, the government, which came into power with a pro-West agenda, slowly started to warm up towards China—which was the favoured ally of former President Mahinda Rajapaksa—as FDIs and trade relations with the West suffered due to a weak global macroeconomic front.

Xianliang assured that China did not pressure the Sri Lankan government to resume the project, even though geopolitics had remained the centre stage behind the scenes, as it was revealed recently that the project had reportedly received immense opposition from India, which may have led to the postponement.

“Everyone is talking about the environment and politics, but no one is talking about the 5,000 people who lost their jobs when the construction was stopped. Who is going to pay for them?” Xianliang asked.

China recently accepted an increased land area within the project, in exchange for not pushing for punitive damages for the delay and Xianliang said that the project would resume within one year.

“Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe said that it would resume within one year. The Port City will begin after the monsoon season, because it is hard to do construction with the weather. It will also take time to prepare 5,000 workers,” he added. (Chandeepa Weththasinghe)

- http://www.dailymirror.lk/115076/China-ready-to-pump-in-over-US-bn-in-FDIs-envoy

 

[hancok]

නියෙමට ප්ලැන් කරලා ....ලොල්

Gon katha kiyannepa ban

 

[Identity]

...මේක සංවර්ධන නිවුස් එකක්ද යකෝ ....

 

[monson]

Major milestone in US-SL trade to be reached today

A major milestone in the historic US-Sri Lanka bilateral trade will be reached today when the Work Plan under US-Sri Lanka Trade and Investment Framework (TIFA) goes into immediate effect after inked by both sides.


On April 28, 2016 in Washington, DC, the 12th US-Sri Lanka TIFA Council meeting was held co-chaired by US Trade Representative Michael Froman and Sri Lanka Development Strategies and International Trade Minister Malik Samarawickrama.


With a goal of significantly increasing two-way trade and investment between the US and Sri Lanka, the two governments adopted a US-Sri Lanka Joint Action Plan to Boost Trade and Investment at the April 28 TIFA Council meeting.


The intersessional meeting of 12th TIFA Joint Council Meeting will be held in Colombo today joined by the visiting Assistant US Trade Representative for South Asia Michael J. Delaney. “I am here to complete the work plan under the US-Sri Lanka Joint Action Plan finalised on April 28 in Washington, DC,” Delaney said. “We are finalising the work plan tomorrow September 1 in Colombo and it will go into effect immediately,” he added.

In 2015, total bilateral trade between the two countries stood at US $ 3.3 billion. According to the Commerce Department of Sri Lanka, the US continues to be the largest single export market for Sri Lanka having absorbed 23 percent of Sri Lanka’s total exports.


US-Sri Lanka bilateral trade jumped 33 percent in the five-year period from 2011.

- http://www.dailymirror.lk/115085/Major-milestone-in-US-SL-trade-to-be-reached-today
- http://www.ft.lk/article/565273/TIFA-work-plan-to-mark-major-US-Sri-Lanka-trade-milestone

 

[monson]

 

[monson]

 

[ȜMA X]

 

[monson]

 

[Gasa84]

Gon katha kiyannepa ban

මන් කිවුවේ ඉස්කෝල පටන් ගන්නකොටම ඕවා පටන් ගත්ත එක හොදයිනේ තදබදය අඩු වෙනවනේ

 

[monson]

TIFA will give SL exports more access to US market

Development Strategies and International Trade Minister Malik Samarawickrama said the Inter-Sessional meetings of the 12th United States- Sri Lanka Trade and Investment Framework Agreement (TIFA) to complete the work-plan under US-Sri Lanka Joint Action Plan finalised on April 28 in Washington DC will yield concrete outcomes and give Sri Lanka’s exports increased access to the US market.

“This will also enable us to leverage the trade-investment nexus to attract much needed FDI flows. The three year average of USA FDI into Sri Lanka stood at US$60m per annum.This is still at a very low base relative to the potential and we are keen to facilitate investment”.

“For the year to date 2016, our exports to the USA continue to perform well with a 2% year on year growth. However we need to urgently accelerate this growth by better market access.”

Sri Lanka exported US$1.27 billion of apparel, $97m of rubber tyres, $23m of gloves, $22m of chilled fish, and $19m of gems during the period January to July 2016,” he said. “We also appreciate the fact that USAID is ramping up its operations in Sri Lanka. Our initial discussions with the Mission Director, who assumed duties very recently is most encouraging. The Millennium Challenge Corporation based in Washington is actively working with us on exploring the possibility of Sri Lanka becoming a ‘Compact’ country, which will open up significant amounts of grant financing. “
The Minister also added that the Harvard Kennedy School’s Center for International Development is also working with Sri Lanka on a number of measures to improve the investment climate and strengthen trade facilitation.

- http://www.dailynews.lk/?q=2016/09/02/business/92125

 

[ජිංතක ජිල්ලබකිට]

 

[monson]

- https://www.facebook.com/Lakshman-Kiriella-Member-of-Sri-Lanka-Parliment-282026118550353/photos

 

[monson]

Sri Lanka, US agree on greater use of preferential tariffs

ECONOMYNEXT – Sri Lanka and the United States have agreed on an action plan to deepen trade ties between the two countries, including more use of American preferential tariff arrangements, in their latest round of talks.

The agreement came at an inter-sessional meeting of the US-Sri Lanka Trade and Investment Framework Agreement (TIFA) Council meeting held on September 1, 2016, in Colombo, Sri Lanka.

The Joint Action Plan aims at reaching its goals over a span of five years, a US embassy statement said.

The Action Plan is based on specific proposals submitted by Sri Lanka on improving export competiveness, technical and financial assistance, the role of women in trade, developing new markets and regional services, promoting greater business interaction, and help for capacity building of small businesses.

At Thursday’s talk, both sides agreed on a wide-ranging implementation plan to provide for greater utilisation of US tariff preference arrangements and additional information on possible mechanisms to obtain preferential market access, the statement said.

They also agreed on a US-Sri Lanka Business Opportunities Conference, on support for youth entrepreneurs, to enhance Sri Lankan capacity to export food items to the United States, and further mechanisms to support Sri Lanka's goal to serve as a regional services hub.
(COLOMBO, September 02, 2016)

- http://www.economynext.com/Sri_Lanka,_US_agree_on_greater_use_of_preferential_tariffs-3-6022-1.html

 

[monson]

මහරගම අපේක්ෂා පිළිකා රෝහලේ රසාවි වෛද්‍ය වාටිටු සංකීර්ණය සහ ලේ බැංකුව විවෘත කිරීම

 

[monson]

කොළඹ ජාතික රෝහලේ ස්නායු ශල්‍ය වෛද්‍ය ඒකකයට මොළයේ ස්නායු පරික්ෂණ සදහා භාවිතා කරනු ලබන biplane angiography machine සහ O-arm Navigation Surgical Imaging System උපකරණ දෙක පරිත්‍යාග කිරීමෙි අවස්ථාව

රජයේ රෝහලක මෙවැනි නවින තාක්ෂණයෙන් යුත් මෙම ස්නායු පරීක්ෂණ යන්ත්‍ර සවි කළ ප්‍රථම අවස්ථාව මෙය වන අතර, මොළයේ ලේ නහරවල රෝග විනිශ්චය කර ගැනිමට මෙම උපකරණ දායක කර ගනු ලබන අතර, විශේෂයෙන්ම රුධිර නාල වල නෙරපීමක් ඇති වුවහොත් එය සොයාගැනීම සදහාත් ආඝාතය පරික්ෂා කිරිම සදහාත් මෙම උපකරණ භාවිතා කරනු ලබයි.

- https://www.facebook.com/Dr.Rajitha...00674264130/10154200673079130/?type=3&theater

 

[monson]

 

[monson]

උමාඔය ව්‍යාපෘතියට මෙගාවොට් 60ක ට්‍රාන්ස්ෆෝමරයක්

උමාඔය බහුකාර්ය ව්‍යාපෘතියට විදුලිය සැපයීමට අවශ්‍ය මෙගාවොට් 60 ක ධාරිතාවයෙන් යුත් ටොන් 81 ක් බර අඩි 12 ක් උස විදුලි ට්‍රාන්ස්ෆෝමරයක් තායිලන්තයේ සිට ඇල්ල කරඳගොල්ල උමා ඔය ව්‍යාපෘතියේ භූගත විදුලි බලාගාරයට ඊයේ (2) ප්‍රථමවරට ගෙන ආ බව උමාඔය බහුකාර්ය ව්‍යාපෘතියේ ව්‍යාපෘති අධ්‍යක්ෂ ආචාර්ය සුනිල් ද සිල්වා මහතා පැවසීය.

තායිලන්තයේ සිට හම්බන්තොට මාගම්පුර වරායට ගෙන ආ විදුලිය ට්‍රාන්ස්ෆෝමරය වරායේ සිට විශාල ලොරියකින් මෙසේ දැඩි ලෙස පොලිස් ආරක්ෂාව මැද ගෙන ආහ.

විදුලිබල මණ්ඩලයේ සේවක පිරිස විදුලිය විසන්ධි කරමින් මාර්ගය හරහා තිබූ විදුලිය කම්බි ද, ටෙලිකොම් සේවකයින් ආරක්ෂිත රැහැන් ද ඉවත් කරමින් විදුලිය ට්‍රාන්ස්ෆෝමරය ගෙන යාමට ඉඩකඩ සලසා දුන්හ.

උමාඔය ව්‍යාපෘතියේ විදුලිය සැපයීමට මෙගාවොට් 120 ක ධාරිතාවයෙන් යුත් විදුලිය ට්‍රාන්ස්ෆෝමරයක් අවශ්‍ය බවත්, ඒ අනුව ප්‍රථම විදුලිය ට්‍රාන්ස්ෆෝමරය මෙසේ ගෙන ආ බවත් අනෙක් විදුලිය ට්‍රාන්ස්ෆෝමරය ඉදිරි දින කීපය තුළ ගෙන එන බව ද උමා ඔය බහුකාර්ය ව්‍යාපෘතියේ ව්‍යාපෘති අධ්‍යක්ෂ ආචාර්ය සුනිල් ද සිල්වා මහතා සඳහන් කෙළේය.

- http://www.dinamina.lk/?q=2016/09/03/21873

 

[monson]

Railway Electrification: Game changer in public transport, now firmly on track

During peak hours, roads in-and-out of Colombo are heavily congested and the trains excessively packed. Reaching Dehiwala from Fort by bus after work – a distance of 11 km – may well take more than one hour. Though many use the train to cut the trip time, the journey is arduous, with many a dozen precariously balancing on the footboard. Trains are often late and uncomfortable to travel in, and the periodic fresh coating of paint and adjustments to platform lengths/heights, are all that our railway stations have seen since independence. In 2009, the loss to the economy owing to inefficient transport was estimated by University of Moratuwa to be in excess of Rs. 32 billion. Ad hoc investments into infrastructure ‘improvements’, such as road expansion and flyovers, have brought little relief, and plunged the country further into debt, without matching economic benefits.

Inefficient public transport throw more young and middle-aged workers from the train and bus on to the road, first on to a motor cycle, then to a car, all purchased with their hard-earned cash. Already a major issue , the transport problems in the capital city and the suburbs only threaten to worsen. Amidst all this doom and gloom, however, there is one beacon of hope : The plan to electrify and modernise Sri Lanka’s suburban railway network is now firmly on track. Railway electrification is a truly homegrown idea that would benefit large sections of the population.

The Institution of Engineers Sri Lanka (IESL) has been at the forefront of championing this cause for nearly two decades. In 1998, IESL proposed electrifying the 13 km long Colombo-Ragama section. This was to serve as a pilot project, not merely for railway electrification but also for implementing local engineering solutions to the country’s pressing development challenges.

Despite initial enthusiasm from the Government, the proposal did not see the light of day. Ten years later, in 2008, IESL revived the idea again by appointing a Committee on Railway Electrification. Within a short span of time, the committee comprising experts in the field conducted a pre-feasibility study, developed the economic rationale, prioritized sections to be electrified, and proposed a suitable power supply system. IESL was assisted by the Institution of Engineers, India, to conduct the pre-feasibility study of 2008. Following years of unsuccessful lobbying by IESL with Governments, the proposal was given a new lease of life in June 2015, when the Government finally approved the project to electrify and modernise the suburban railway network, commencing with Panadura-Colombo-Veyangoda.

ADB funding

The Asian Development Bank has since agreed to finance the project through a low interest loan of US$300 million, with an indication of a further $300 million to expand the electrified network. This landmark project is being implemented under the Ministry of Transport and Civil Aviation; a team of national and international consultants is already working on the feasibility study and preparing the conceptual designs. Sri Lanka Railways (SLR), Ceylon Electricity Board, and Lanka Electricity Company are expected play significant roles as the project progresses to the next phase of detailed designs and construction, with SLR eventually taking over the operations of the electric trains.

2020 is earmarked as the year to have our first electric train service up and running in the Panadura-Colombo-Veyangoda sector, almost 100 years after the then Ceylon Governor Sir William Manning first proposed the idea in 1924, followed-up by Engineer D.J. Wimalasurendra proposing more details in a research paper. Electricity supply to trains will be from a 25 kilovolt line suspended above the tracks. The electric service will use existing tracks, but the project will rebuild tracks to enable speeds up to 100 km. Long distance trains and electrified service will share the same tracks, but engineers are studying sectors where additional tracks can be laid to ease congestion and facilitate overtaking.

The first suburban section to be electrified will be the Panadura-Colombo-Veyangoda. Passenger information shows that more than 40 per cent of SLR passengers begin and end their journey within this 64 km section. Extending this service up to Polgahawela, Kalutara south are future options. Electrification of the Ragama-Negombo line with connection to the airport, and the Kelani Valley line, as well as a new line from Colombo to Battaramulla, are all being studied and prioritized. The benefits are enormous. Even with extremely conservative estimates, energy and maintenance cost per train kilometer will be halved with electric power sets. Electric trains have higher acceleration and deceleration.

Being connected to the grid, “regenerative breaking” recovers a portion of electricity used, when the train brakes. Greater passenger safety and comfort would be guaranteed, with closed doors and air-conditioning becoming a standard feature. From the standpoint of national power supply, the IESL study of 2008 concluded that running electric train services would not require additional grid capacity, and, in fact, would improve the national load profile and help the grid.

Smooth and safe boarding

A full-fledged modernisation scheme will complement electrification to bring to fruit the full benefits. Better quality tracks for higher speeds and safer crossings are a priority. Electric railway lines will be fenced off to prevent people and animal invasion. Further, the station platforms and the train’s base would be at the same elevation while the entry/exit corridors would align with the train’s doors for smooth and safe boarding. Safe parking spots would be created around stations. Electronic-ticketing and automated announcements will be implemented.

Railway electrification is a game changer in Sri Lanka’s public transport. A fast and efficient, yet affordable, train service would dissuade people from investing in private vehicles. Just doubling the number of passengers that presently use the train service – eminently possible with fast electric trains and a more frequent service – will result in an exponential drop in road traffic. Our rides back home from work will cease to be a nightmare. The IESL is glad to be a partner in the railway electrification and modernization project, assisting the Government and SLR to finally realize the dream of several generations of commuters.

- http://www.sundaytimes.lk/160904/bu...lic-transport-now-firmly-on-track-207181.html

 

[monson]

WP’s ailing public transport system to improve

By Bandula Sirimanna

Sri Lanka is set to introduce far-reaching improvements to the Western Province’s ailing public transport system, a senior Government Minister disclosed. Public transport intervention is to be given priority under this initiative where the railway is expected to play a vital role with a Rapid Transit System (RTS) providing fast access to Colombo central and suburbs. The Ministry of Megapolis and Western Development has devised a plan with the assistance of a committee of transportation experts to modernise the bus service, introduce electrified railway system, a modern Rapid Transit System and inland water transport using a brand new boat/ferry service that utilises the Western province canal network.

The Treasury will allocate US$663 million to modernise the Colombo city’s bus service integrating with the proposed Rapid Transit System (RTS) and railway. A complete restructuring of the railway has been proposed under this mega project spanning 20 years at a cost of $3.1 billion.
A total of 196 km of existing railway lines will be electrified under this project, with an additional 52 km added to the existing railway line.
This will transform the entire public transport in Sri Lanka by introducing a Light Rail Transit (LRT) system that is projected to transport up to 30,000 passengers per hour in a particular direction.

The Government has abandoned the widely anticipated monorail system for Sri Lanka and instead opted for light rail as a remedy to heavy traffic congestion in Colombo, official sources revealed. The Cabinet Committee on Economic Management (CCEM) has decided to recommend this system after the Minister of Megapolis and Western Development Patali Champika Ranawaka indicated that light rail was the feasible transport mode for the Colombo city. Representatives of the Japanese Ministry of Economic, Trade and Industry expressed their government’s interest to assist to improve Sri Lanka urban transport system through the provision of a yen loan to the government.

A complete feasibility study is to be undertaken by the Japanese experts as the government is interested in introducing the LRT system, the minister told the Business Times. It was reported that several pre –feasibility studies have been done on transport modes while a JICA team worked on Mono Rail systems. Therefore it was agreed by both the ministry and JICA that the feasibility study could be completed in a year’s time due to data availability from previous studies. The CCEM is to recommend to the Cabinet to select Light Metro Railway system to be implemented in the next four years and complete the feasibility study in one year with the assistance of JICA.

A draft cabinet memorandum submitted jointly by the Ministry Transport and Ministry of Megapolis recommends appointing a cabinet appointed negotiation committee and call for Expression of Interests to invest in Multi –Model Transport hub at Fort/ Pettah to integrate all transport modes. Minister Ranawaka noted that both Japanese and French companies have expressed their interests to invest in a multimodel transport hub. Subrana Jurong of Singapore has also expressed interest in the Megapolis Master Plan projects. This plan seeks to establish a multimodal hub at the heart of Colombo that will integrate transportation, logistics, and leisure facilities.

The main hub will be located in Fort/Pettah, with 11 multimodal centres in Horana, Kottawa, Kaduwela, Kadawatha, Panadura, Negombo, Avissawella, Gampaha, Meerigama, Ragama and Moratuwa. The government will also utilise the under-used canal system to provide a safe and comfortable mode of transport for the citizens of Colombo at a cost of $125 million. New boats and ferries equipped with air conditioning will provide a safe commuter service between Wellawatte – Battaramulla, Fort – Union Place and Mattakkuliya – Hanwella Line, he added.

- http://www.sundaytimes.lk/160904/bu...ublic-transport-system-to-improve-207210.html