The Colombo Port is experiencing a notable improve in transshipment volumes for the reason that begin of January on account of rerouting of ships following a rise in assaults within the Crimson Sea by Yemen-based Houthi rebels.Vessels are actually choosing an prolonged route round Africa as a substitute of utilizing the Suez Canal.
Ports Minister Nimal Siripala de Silva stated he has directed officers to optimise operations of the Colombo Port to accommodate the surge in site visitors of container cargo in view of the emergency scenario within the Crimson Sea.
By mid-January, the Colombo Port had seen an 80 per cent improve in quantity, dealing with practically 200,000 containers.
In response to Sri Lanka Port Authority officers, they’re anticipating to deal with round 7 million containers or TEUs (twenty-foot equal items) in 2024.
In 2023, the Colombo Port dealt with 6.9 million TEUs, up from 6.86 million TEUs in 2022.
Developments are underway at Colombo Port’s jap and western container terminals to spice up its TEU capability from 8 million to eight.5 million, officers stated.
Commenting on the Colombo port’s elevated operations, state minister of international affairs Tharaka Balasuriya stated the event needs to be seen within the background of safeguarding freedom of navigation in worldwide waters, which have to be protected always.
In the meantime, the Sri Lankan Navy has dedicated to dispatch a vessel to take part within the worldwide operations in opposition to Houthi insurgent assaults on service provider transport within the Crimson Sea.