Joint ventures between India and Sri Lanka in the energy sector – Gold FM News

President Ranil Wickremesinghe expressed his commitment to maintaining a strong partnership with India to achieve Sri Lanka’s development goals. Stressing the urgent need to accelerate joint initiatives, President Wickremesinghe highlighted a comprehensive program aimed at bilateral transformational projects.

The president stressed the importance of strengthening cooperation between the two nations, especially in the energy sector, aimed at supporting new development in the northern region, which has been deeply affected by three decades of conflict.

President Ranil Wickremesinghe made these remarks while laying out a compelling vision for the future of Sri Lanka-India relations during his speech at the 31st All India Partners Meeting 2024 (AIPM 2024) held at ICT Ratnadipa, Colombo.

AIPM 2024 organized by KPGM Sri Lanka and India provided a platform for both countries to reaffirm their commitment to joint projects that promise to redefine bilateral relations and boost socio-economic growth.

The 31st All India Partners Meeting in Colombo, Sri Lanka on June 20-22, 2024 was jointly organized by KPMG India and KPMG Sri Lanka. The India Firm Annual Meeting is one of the largest events held in Colombo, attended by over 600 India Partners and their families. The achievements of the past year were celebrated and plans for the future were discussed.

KPMG India Chief Executive Yezdi Nagporewalla and KPMG Sri Lanka Managing Partner conveyed their appreciation to President Ranil Wickremesinghe

President Ranil Wickremesinghe elaborated in his speech at the ceremony:

It is a great pleasure and honor to host you in Sri Lanka, in Colombo, for this meeting. This shows, on the one hand, the close friendship between our two countries and, on the other hand, the trust they have in Sri Lanka.

After two difficult years, I must admit that it was possible because India gave us a loan of USD 3.5 billion. It will all be paid off. We have already repaid the $200 million loan that Bangladesh gave us.

We have just concluded the IMF Executive Board meeting, which was quite successful, and we are then preparing to meet with our creditor countries, the Paris Club, India and others who will convene next week at the official creditors committee, and we are also continuing talks with China with Exim Bank of China.

After completing the discussion, we move on to the next stage. Thanks to this, we are ready to sign agreements with our official creditors and Exim Bank of China. So next week, on Wednesday, we will be meeting with the OCC, and we will also be in talks with Exim Bank of China within the next week. I also hope that by next week or later we will be out of this bankruptcy phase and as we progress, we will move into the next phase.

Sri Lanka’s return to operations marks a key decision-making phase. The key issue is to define what this return is. A return to business as usual would mean continuing an import-dependent economy, leading to continued borrowing to finance imports and perpetuating a harmful cycle. Having already faced such a scenario, the big question now is whether we are ready to repeat this path.

An alternative goal is to gradually move towards a competitive, export-oriented economy, which is an important goal. Recognizing the inherent challenges of this transformation, particularly in the Sri Lankan context, we have adopted a new approach: introducing legislative economic policies to effectively drive this transformation.

We will introduce policies to achieve economic transformation: moving towards a highly competitive, digital, green and export-oriented economy. These policies will set benchmarks for foreign investment, export earnings and the reduction of multidimensional poverty – for the first time in our region.

Traditionally, politics in Sri Lanka has changed with each new government. To solve this problem, we have developed a draft law on economic transformation, which is currently undergoing pre-legislative scrutiny in parliament and the courts.

In addition to outlining policies, we are establishing new institutions such as the Economic Commission to take over from the BOI in driving investment responsibilities, a dedicated agency to manage investment zones, the International Trade Office to strengthen global trade, and the National Productivity Commission to boost productivity. In addition, the Institute of Economics and International Trade will act as an advisory center bringing together economists and experts to effectively shape Sri Lanka’s economic strategies. So that’s basically the path we’re going to take

The second one is the other eye that I dealt with today and which is in my program, i.e. India. When I was in Delhi last week, I discussed with Prime Minister Modi the need to accelerate the common program that we have decided and agreed on. Thus, the most important ones were identified and External Affairs Minister Jaishankar came today to hold a discussion. Now it will show the new path we are taking and multiple projects, all in one package.

These will not be individual projects. We’ve covered quite a few of them. Firstly, it is about the grid connection between Sri Lanka and India to enable the transfer of sustainable energy to India, where you all desperately need it. We have the Sampur solar project, which is a government project (G2G), and a three-island project, and in this case, we hope that the foundation stone will be laid in July.

This is the basis of our energy partnership and we are considering the development of the Polk Straight in wind and solar energy, so that both countries can come together and create a large solar farm, renewable energy. This also means that we will have a new economy for the northern province, which suffered the most from the wars.

Apart from energy, we also discussed India’s assistance in expanding the Kankasanturai Port, which is the main port on the Jaffna Peninsula, and ensuring more businesses come to the port. We are also in talks with India on the development of airports, Palali Airport and Colombo Airport.

The National Livestock Development Council of Sri Lanka, in collaboration with India’s Amul Dairy Company, has highlighted a program aimed at increasing liquid milk production in the country. This is the big project that practically most of our organized dairy industry is dealing with.

Additionally, there was focus on a project to establish a land link between Sri Lanka and India. There have also been extensive discussions on accelerating the Trincomalee development project, which includes industrial investment zones and tourism areas. Moreover, plans are underway to construct a multi-product petroleum pipeline from Nagapatnam to Trincomalee, pending the final observation report. Trincomalee is poised to become an oil refining hub, with the development of ports and investment zones, transforming Trincomalee Port into a significant hub on the Bay of Bengal.

Today, the entire eastern coast is opened to tourism, with additional land earmarked for hotels in Galle and the south. There are also plans to create further investment zones throughout the country and expand professional training programs. We cooperate closely with India in these endeavors.

In this momentous event, KPMG India CEO Yezdi Nagporewalla praised President Ranil Wickremesinghe’s visionary leadership and unwavering commitment to the welfare of the Sri Lankan people, highlighting his role in leading the nation towards a promising future amidst various challenges. He emphasized that the President’s initiatives to promote economic development, strengthen democratic institutions and foster social cohesion have gained both domestic admiration and international recognition, positioning Sri Lanka as a model nation.

Highlighting improved connectivity and cooperation between the two nations, Mr. Nagporewalla also described President Wickremesinghe’s presence at the gathering as a testament to the solid and enduring relationship between the two countries, based on shared values, mutual respect and commitment to global progress.

The meeting was attended by several partners from other member firms of the KPMG Global network, and the event was also attended by other leading Indian business and industry luminaries.