Colombo, Feb 20 (newsin.asia) – Sri Lanka’s Colombo Port handled 564,155 containers in January 2018, up 16.4 percent from a year earlier, The Sri Lanka Ports Authority (SLPA) said in a statement Tuesday.
Trans shipment volumes had risen 20.4 percent to 436,303 twenty foot equivalent units (TEUs) in January, the SLPA added.
The containers at the Colombo Port are handled by the state run Jaya Container Terminal (JCT), Colombo International Container Terminals, operated by China’s CM Ports group and South Asia Gateway Terminals owned by Colombo listed John Keells group.
The Colombo Port reached new heights when it handled its six millionth TEU in December, making it a record for the South Asian port.
In 2016 Colombo’s volumes grew 10.6 percent to 5.734 million twenty foot equivalent units (TEUs) helping it overtake Bremen/Bremerhaven (5.535 mn) in Germany and Tanjung Prion (5.515mn) in Indonesia, in a ranking of top 100 container ports by Lloyd’s List.
Subsequently, the Colombo Port moved up two places to become the 25th busiest container port, next to Vietnam’s Ho Chi Minh City, in 2017.
Ports Minister, Mahinda Samarasingha said that it was commendable to witness the Port of Colombo had achieved great feats through public private collaboration.