Setting Sail For Hambantota
By J. Abeywickrema
The proposed project
As you read this, this Sunday morning, the 15th of August 2010, Sri Lanka’s map is being permanently altered. The southern city of Hambantota will never be like what we have known it for millennia as of this morning.
This is because the Indian Ocean will inundate a vast swathe of land in Hambantota, roughly the size of Male in the sinking Maldives. This seems a little odd because countries all over the world are reclaiming the sea to build their ports and airports, preserving their most valuable asset, land, but we are happily sacrificing a significant portion of ours, to the sea. Do we hear someone say, ah, typical party poopers!
Pardon us for spoiling the party in Hambantota as the seawater is let in filling the harbour basin of the new Hambantota Port by President Rajapaksa, but the fact is, Sri Lanka is losing real estate, to the sea.
Probably it is this sense of loss that triggered the conscience of the mandarins running the Ports Authority to issue a statement that was somewhat out of the ordinary. The statement which was also posted on the Ports Authority’s official website read; “Visitors will be allowed to the harbour premises from 4 a.m. without hindrance. Sri Lanka Ports Authority has taken steps to facilitate the visitors, as this is a historic event. The harbour will be filled with small quantities of water first to allow the public to wade in and wallow in the water, as this is an opportunity afforded once in a lifetime. Gradually, the harbour will be filled up to the required water level.”
What caught our attention was the state authority’s inclination to delay the inevitable – “The harbour will be filled with small quantities of water first to allow the public to wade in and wallow in the water as this is an opportunity afforded once in a lifetime.”
We are not very sure whether the residents of Hambantota, part of whose area is being filled with sea water and the many thousands who are expected to witness the event will take the advice of the Ports Authority and “wade in and wallow in the water,” but considering the fact that “this is an opportunity afforded once in a lifetime,” they just might.
In case wires get crossed, let it be stated clearly that we for a moment do not wish to sound ‘anti-development’. Meaningful development, yes by all means is a good thing and must be applauded, but we wonder if the land sacrifice made by this country for the purpose of a port, when Colombo is already in the midst of a mega expansion with a new Southern terminal and Galle being a fantastic natural option, is really the need of the hour.
Generally countries use up land to build a port only where there is no natural harbour that can be utilised for the purpose. In the case of Hambantota, there is no natural harbour but a few kilometers West on the Southern coast itself is Galle, which has a natural harbour. The expressed purpose of the Hambantota port has been to service thousands of ships plying the Silk Route shipping line that connects the Far East to the West. The idea of a port in Hambantota to tap this shipping line has been around for at least 20 years and even the last UNP government was toying with the idea.
No doubt Hambantota can do with a port, but what is of concern is the scale of the current project and its funding, with every cent spent on it having to be paid back to the Exim Bank of China. The shipping industry has expressed the view that Galle could have been developed at a much cheaper cost since it is a natural harbour and served the same purpose – servicing the Silk Route. That however would not have served the other more important purpose of the project, which is to make the Rajapaksa hometown the centre of the universe with ports, airports, convention centres, World Cup cricket stadiums etc.
A shipping industry source when queried as to the viability of the Hambantota Port, was of the opinion that it would take some doing to attract the thousands of ships sailing just South of it in the Indian Ocean to call over at the new port. As the source pointed out, there needs to be a reason for the ships to call over. If it is trade then that is still at the incubator stage with companies unlikely to queue up in Hambantota with the logistical nightmare it envisages when it comes to land transportation with the lack of any highway linking it to the commercial capital of the country. Any relative cost benefit in sea freight would be offset by high inland transportation costs.
Transshipment is also not a hot area according to our source, who believes there is little reason for shippers to move away from the relative comfort that Colombo offers.
The main area where Hambantota can bring in revenue has been touted as bunkering operations. That however is debatable with today’s new generation tankers being custom built to service specific routes, taking into consideration the existing ports. Also it was mentioned that today’s vessels have an extended range where they need to fuel only at either terminal, making it redundant to refuel mid-journey, which is what Hambantota offers.
However, it is not all doom and gloom. Hambantota is not a bad idea, but neither is it a good idea considering the enormous cost and the huge chunk of land that has to be sacrificed to the sea as per the scale of the present project. As in all things, only time will tell as to the viability of this mega project and until such time let’s join President Mahinda Rajapaksa and the rest of his clan in their hometown to “wade in and wallow in the water as this is an opportunity afforded once in a lifetime.”
Hey J. Abeywickrema,
yOU ARE A FOOL.Every srilankan and well wishers appreciate this.Unfortunately people like you with very small brains(if you got a one at all) don’t.Ask fedrika to eemploy as a toilet cleaner in leader as you are not suitable for to become a media man
ha ha, this abeywickrema guy is funny. I wonder why all these shop owners sell all their products? because most people in the world are buying them. so in Abe’s logic the shop owners are loosing products while consumers are gaining ???? wow
Jungi Hora, I totally agree with your comment. I wonder if this guy got paid to write this? if so I should be able to get a job here. all I have to do is pick holes in anything and everything happening in Sri Lanka.
A commercial bank doesn’t lend 6 billion dollars to a project if it’s not going to make money for them, even if the government becomes debt ridden banks don’t like loosing money. Maybe they do in Abey’s world!
and since realestate is so important, we should get rid of all the farms and build houses on them, don’t worry about food. yeah right! which school of economics did he take? cos I want to visit, just to laugh at their economic conspiracy theories
Off all the things that you could have used to argue against this project, look at what you chose to do your writing– the land that will be taken up by the sea! Next time, if you cannot control your jealousy or whatever thing that makes you see the bad side when there are plenty of good things to see around, pick something that will fly. This land idea is a none starter even for a fool. If Sri Lankan cannot succeed as a port while been right in the middle of Indian ocean, then who can? Even if current ship are built in such a manner so that they do not need to stop at Hambantota, it can equally be argued that carrying fuel unnecessarily adds cost. If refueling at Hambantota midway is cheaper that carrying extra fuel from origin to destination, then current fueling patterns will change– see how stupid your reasoning is?
This dirty journalism, with full of Jealousy and venom. Value of land used is cheaper than construction of sevarl kilometers of Break Water in 100-200 ft deep sea. Sunday Leader must know to good work done by the Government for benfit of people.
Pity Mr. J. Abeywickrema, who is trying to masquerade as an Economist. The loss of land argument is very shallow and has no economic foundation as any factor of production must be put to use in a manner that provides the best rate of return.
The writer is a jealous man,feel sorry for him as he don’t know that, where the port is coming up is below sea level,and he calls it as a real estate, fool…
The best natural harbour in the south is the Mawella lagoon – near Dickwella – sourrounded on three sides by land and deep enough for ships. Mawella was selected long ago for a Coal Power Plant but was not approved by President Premadasa, with disastrous consequences for the power and energy sector..Now there is a hotel there.
But the new harbour had to be in Hambantota, the fiefdom of Rajapakses.
The Oluvil Port is not talked about now. Will there be an investigative report on it.
Is it also a future white elephant.
Wow, another low for the sunday leader… what a pathetic newspaper.
good point you made, never knew they are giving a way huge size of land to develop the port. I have many more reason why this project will become a white elephant.
But nothing to worry, China know this very well they building the port for another reason. trap sri lankans in their lending industry and eventually get sri lank’s government will not have any other choice but to surrender the port to Chinese for their own purposes.
Every wondered why the Indian refused to build something like this ? its not economical. specially when Sri Lanka have many natural harbours.
What can I say..where can i start….
Does the writer knows any thing about shipping industry.this is pure junk and rubbish what writer has wriitten.
Its better you do resurch and write. just becuse you know english and written skills you will not become a writter.
This was once higly respected news paper once , but people like you broght it down.
i am not going to write the things which this port will bring to SL but will write this as a person in shipping industre, out of the country. India is already scared of the project, and proposed canal thru Thailand to avoid the time taken by the vessel to cross malaka straight. this will be a mega hub port .
dont be a frog in the ell.
I cannot understand why some of our Srilankans are against this type of “Great Jobs”. What is the use of lands in Hambantota area just neglected as lands only.Get use of this lands even to make a “Harbour” is a great thing to the ‘NextGeneration”. If we think like this and, what people said , when “Mahaweli Project” first came to the public were same.Some people said “Valuable lands going under water”, but today” Mahaweli” is the lifeline of agriculture.We must have to think the “Big Screen”, not the end of your “Nose”.
This is a Huge White Elephant. Rajapakses are destroying Hambanthota, thereby the country. Idiots
7-11 shop
Mahaweli is an utter failure
That is your point of view, but not the whole educated world.If people thought like that today no more “Flights” “Teliphone” even no “Heart Transplant” my friend.Try to go with the “Modern World”.
some of us has the bad habit to find fault in every thing. when development like this took place we must see the betterment of the people who live in that area and the benefit country is going to get. this is the first time we have development with employment in the deep south. for that we must thank to M.R who is the son of the soil.
Ram.Ramalingam
Ram.Ramalingam
You are correct my friend,people are different, not even “Twins” are same kind, but when some one did some “Great Job” to the next generation, as educated people we must have to appreciate and encourage that person to do more, projects like that with out criticizeing, and laughing at it. As you said this “DryZone” was badly neglected for years and years. Premadasa was the first politician who even look at this area after “Lenoard Woolf`s great storyVillage in the Jungle”. I believe in ancient Ceylon there was a “Harbour” in this area used by” Muslim Traders” , called as “Hambayans” that was why this area called as ” Hambayan Thota”, which later became “Hambanthota”.Those people must have to think before they comment “Foolish Gossips”
Well, I agree with the article, environment disaster and waste of money. MR is doing this to make him name in history like that duffer SWRDBanda did years ago. MR is an Ego & power freak. If he really wants developments then why not upgrading Galle or Trinco harbour. Why all in Hambantota, what are the potentials. If MR spending his own money its okay. airport, harbour, an indian consulate and what more? Wahtever MR does is not for the country but for his sake.