Thai Explores Opportunities At Sri Lankan Hambantota International Port

An eight-member team from the Thai Prime Minister's Office visited the Hambantota International Port (HIP) to assess potential opportunities and understand how the port operates under the public-private partnership between the government of Sri Lanka and CM Port, according to a Sri Lankan state media report on Monday

COLOMBO, (APP - UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 1st Apr, 2024) An eight-member team from the Thai Prime Minister's Office visited the Hambantota International Port (HIP) to assess potential opportunities and understand how the port operates under the public-private partnership between the government of Sri Lanka and CM Port, according to a Sri Lankan state media report on Monday.

Hambantota International Port Group (HIPG) Chief Operating Officer Tissa Wickramasinghe said the free trade agreement between Sri Lanka and Thailand provides further impetus to interactions between Thailand and the HIP.

Sri Lanka and Thailand signed a free trade agreement in February this year. The two-way trade between the countries was about 460 million U.S. dollars in 2021, Sri Lankan Central Bank data shows.

The HIPG announced earlier that the HIP has begun the process of reviving a MoU with the Thailand Ports Authority.

The HIPG said an agreement was signed between the Ports Authority of Thailand and the HIPG five years ago, but the initiative hibernated with the COVID-19 pandemic and subsequent lockdowns.