---

A total of fourteen companies are reported to be interested in building and operating a new container terminal in Sri Lanka, Lanka Business Online reports.

According to government officials, the fourteen potential investors have all collected bid documents to build the new facility, which would be located at Colombo South port.

The interested parties are said to include port terminal operator Hutchison Port Holdings, (HPH) and shipping lines Maersk and American President Lines Ltd. (APL).

Other companies to collect bid documents were China Harbour Engineering Company (CHEC), which has begun constructing a multi-purpose port at Hambantota on the country’s south west coast, Gulftainer, a port operator based in Sharjah, UAE, and South Asia Gateway Terminals, which operates Colombo's private container terminal.

Asian Development Bank, which is funding the breakwater and dredging of the new port, and Standard Chartered Bank, also collected bid documents, officials said.

Chinese Hong Kong terminal operator, China Merchant Shipping, and Sri Lankan firms John Keells Holdings, Hayleys, Aitken Spence and Hemas were also reported to be amongst the list of interested parties.

The Colombo Port Expansion Project is the largest project undertaken by the Sri Lanka Ports Authority (SLPA). The cost of the new port infrastructure and the first three terminals has been estimated at around $1.2bn.

The SLPA originally said that it expected to award the construction tender by July 2007, but the project was delayed when the government cancelled bids to build the new port's first container terminal, saying that it was unable to decided between the two main contenders, Singapore's PSA Corp and HPH of Hong Kong.

According to local reports, it is not known whether PSA Corp would bid on this occasion through a third party.

Construction work on the breakwater and dredging of the new harbour basin is already under way.

Bids will be opened by the Cabinet appointed negotiating committee on behalf of the Sri Lanka Ports Authority on May 19th.