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Main liners will call again at Colombo Port

by Manjula Fernando

The Sri Lanka Ports Authority (SLPA) is hopeful that the five main liners which bypass the Colombo Port since August last year, after an Additional War Risk Surcharge was imposed on vessels calling at the Colombo Port will resume their services after March 8.

These five main liners are UniGlory Service, UniGlory/Cosco, Hyunda NYK Slots, Hyunda/SCI and Wan Hai/OOCL KMS Service.

A spokesman for the SLPA said "Given the current situation we are expecting a positive response from their local agents after March 8 and the SLPA is already in dialogue with the shipping community in this respect.

The London based War Risk Rating Committee (WRRC) at a meeting last Thursday decided that Sri Lanka was no more a country with a high war risk and therefore to refund the sterling pounds 50 million the Sri Lankan Government had deposited with the Lloyds to shoulder part of the risk, on March 8. The additional surcharge imposed based on their rating is to be removed by the Lloyds underwriters soon after.

The WRRC decision was based on the reports submitted by two internationally acclaimed audit firms which carried out a comprehensive audit at the Colombo Port in January this year. Before, the SLPA with Lloyds instructions made several security adjustments at the Port in an effort to get this additional surcharge removed.

According to the spokesman the present political climate and the truce between the Government and the LTTE also had a favourable impact to reverse the WRRC rating. 

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