Harbour to develop the East:

Oluvil Port Development project to create 10,000 jobs by 2015

By Shirajiv Sirimane

Construction work on the breakwater in progress

Minister of Ports, Rohitha Abeygunawardane and Minister of Local Government and Provincial Councils, A.L.M. Athaullah and other officers inspecting the Port

A newly paved road

Constantinople is said to be the world’s first open market and today this area named as the Grand bazaar is the world’s largest closed market. It is said that it would take over a month for a person to visit each and every shop in the bazaar which has nearly 10 entrances.

During a familiarisation tour organised by the Turkish airlines for the Sri Lankan media the tour guide told me that Constantinople was a focal point of the much talked about silk route where trading from the east to the west took place.History says the then Ceylon or Thambapanni was one of the major suppliers of spice, rice and iron to this market and they were exported from several harbours in Ceylon during that time. It proves that Ceylon, despite being a small island had several harbours, and with the colonial invasions some of the historical harbours such as Magamtota in Hambantota were abandoned.

Though Sri Lanka gained independence in 1948 none of the political leaders gave thought to reviving these harbours and it was under the Mahinda Chintana that plans were drawn up to build five international harbours with the country's future in mind.

Today, two international harbours, one in Hambantota and the extension of the Colombo Port, the second harbour in Colombo are already open. Plans have been finalised to open the much awaited Oluvil harbour which was in the pipeline for over two decades, ushering in economic prosperity to the Eastern Province.

Residential quarters

The road leading to the Oluvil Port

Entrance to the Oluvil Port

Under the Nagenahira Navodaya program which was launched to expedite the development activities in the region, priority has been given for the Oluvil Development Project which will be an economic infrastructure, a catalyst for the growth of the eastern region of Sri Lanka. This port will form the southeastern link in the developing chain of coastal harbours in the country and provide convenient and cost effective access to and from the southeastern region for goods and cargo originating on the west coast.

The proposed project comprises the construction of a commercial harbour and a basin for the fishing crafts and covers a land area of 60 ha in the first stage and 105 ha in the second stage. The harbour basin would cover an area of 16 ha of the sea and would spread 1.2km along the coastline. Work on this harbour commenced in 2008 with funds from the Dutch government. It had provided 46 million euros for the harbour project. It has been constructed as a twin harbour in a sea territory of 21 hectares in Akkaraipattu.

The Oluvil Port Development Project is the first development of a large port infrastructure in the entire eastern coastline of Sri Lanka. Feasibility studies and detailed design studies were carried out by Lanka Hydraulic Institute Ltd during the years 1995 to 2003. The design was reviewed by COWI. Construction of the port was begun in 2008. MT Højgaard was the contractor.Around 600 fishing vessels can be anchored at the fisheries harbour. The commercial harbour with shore facilities will cater to general cargo vessels that will supply the current needs of the region, including coastal passenger transport, with provision for expansion in the future.

A cement factory and a fertiliser storage complex will also be constructed in the harbour premises in the future. Many investors have come forward to start several projects in the harbour area as well. SLPA sources said the Oluvil Harbour will add value to the fishing industry and bring export revenue to the country.

The Oluvil Port will be the only fisheries port in the country and create a hub for all international trawlers as a base to unload their fresh fish which will be processed for export to Japanese, Chinese and other Asian markets. One of the biggest advantage of opening regional harbours would be the uniformity in price throughout the country. Today, items such as fuel and gas are sold at different prices in the provinces after the addition of transport charges. The regional harbour network would allow international ships to unload cargo in these harbours, minimising the transportation of goods from Colombo. The Oluvil port that forms the southeastern link in the developing chain of coastal harbours in the country is expected to provide more convenient and cost effective access to and from the southeastern region for goods and cargo from the west coast.Another advantage is it would help more exports and eliminate the middle-man since the producer can go direct to the harbour.

The project is expected to create 1,000 direct and indirect jobs following the completion of the current stages of the project and another 10,000 employment opportunities by 2015. In addition, several tourism related projects would get off the ground helping the under privileged area rise as a high per capita income earner in the future.