Hong Kong-based conglomerate China Merchants Port Holdings Co (CMPH) will reportedly soon sign a deal to operate Sri Lanka's Hambantota port, media reports said on Thursday.
The joint venture between CMPH and the Sri Lanka Ports Authority (SLPA) is expected to be signed on Saturday, despite criticism of the project, local news site ft.lk reported on Thursday.
The decision to lease the port and 15,000 acres for a proposed industrial zone in Hambantota to CMPH has drawn criticism. But the government in Sri Lanka defended the deal on Wednesday by arguing that it would help turn around white elephant projects in the former President Mahinda Rajapaksa's hometown, according to ft.lk.
CMPH did not respond to the Global Times' interview request on Thursday as of press time.
The company has previously tapped the Sri Lanka market. Another joint venture - Colombo International Container Terminals (CICT) - of CMPH and SLPA announced on Tuesday that it surpassed the 2 million 20-foot equivalent unit (TEU) milestone in 2016.
CICT is the only port in South Asia that is capable of handling 18,000-TEU capacity vessels, and these container carriers accounted for 70 percent of the volume CICT achieved in 2016, the company noted.
As for the new deal, the Chinese company will hold 80 percent of the port under a 99-year lease valued at $1.12 billion, according to media reports.
