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BOI mission to Australia creates conditions for greater bilateral ties

Close and friendly relations between Sri Lanka and Australia have been the major reasons for the success of the recently concluded investment promotion mission the Board of Investment conducted in Australia.

The BOI team headed by Minister of Enterprise Development, Industrial Policy, Investment Promotion and Constitutional Affairs Prof. G. L. Peiris included Arjuna Mahendran, Chairman/Director General of the BOI, Santhush Jayasuriya, Deputy Director General (Promotion) and Wansasiri Abeywickrema, Manager Promotions.

Other participants were the High Commissioner for Sri Lanka in Australia Maj. Gen. Janaka Perera and a number of Sri Lankan companies wishing to develop partnerships with Australian business concerns.

The Sri Lankan enterprises held a number of one-to-one meetings with Australian companies, which engage in the production of a variety of goods and services. Once these agreements are finalised, new investments will enter Sri Lanka and will contribute to the creation of new employment opportunities, capital inflows, technology transfers and the development of new skills, a BOI press release said.

In Melbourne, a number of business meetings were held with leading companies. The AMCO Group, which has a liaison office in Sri Lanka, expressed interest in investing in the Aviation Hangar project at Katunayake Airport, infrastructure development, prefabricated buildings, Hydropower and the apparel sector.

International Recreation Pvt. Ltd. whose parent company is a large property developer in Australia wishes to revive the project it had sought in the 1990s to develop a new golf course in Ahungalle.

The National Electricity Market Management Company Ltd wishes to invest in Sri Lanka's power generation, transmission and distribution.

Eezfreez is looking at the possibility of assembly and manufacture of transport refrigeration units that will then be re-exported back to Australia.

Another potential investor is United Energy, a large power generation company based in Sydney. Snowy Mountain Engineering Company is also keen to set itself up in Sri Lanka under the BOI regime.

Monash University, the reputed Australian establishment is looking at developing offshore courses and other areas of teaching in Sri Lanka.

Rofin Australia Pvt. Ltd., a major manufacturer of forensic light sources used by law enforcement agencies in more than 50 countries worldwide, is another potential investor. Other companies are McConnel Dowell, which is looking at infrastructure development, Hydro Tasmania involved in renewable energy and GE Transportation Systems which makes railway signalling, trains and locomotive control systems. The latter is a subsidiary of General Electric, the huge American concern best known for the manufacture of aircraft and ship engines as well as gas turbines.

In Sydney, the delegation met with Leighton Contractors Pvt Ltd. who was recently in Sri Lanka as part of a visiting delegation from West Australia. Australia Industry Group is a large corporation represents a wide range of Australian businesses and manufacturers. Australian Business Limited represents a large group of businesses in New South Wales, a number of which seek to invest in Sri Lanka. And Cinema Project, which expects to build a Cinema complex in Colombo.

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Copyright 2001 The Associated Newspapers of Ceylon Ltd.
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