China and India are competing for major infrastructure projects in Sri Lanka (Representational)
Sri Lanka on Friday awarded the construction of three solar and wind hybrid power generation facilities to an Indian company after canceling the tender won by a Chinese firm.
India has long been concerned about growing Chinese influence in the island nation, which lies near major global shipping lanes and which it considers within its sphere of influence.
The project, which was initially financed by an Asian Development Bank (ADB) loan, was temporarily halted two years ago after India raised concerns over China’s involvement.
Sri Lanka’s Energy Ministry said on Friday that the project has been revived and is now fully funded by an Indian government grant of $11 million.
It said that the contract for the construction of the building has been awarded to Bengaluru-based renewable energy company U-Solar.
India’s assistance “underscores the importance New Delhi attaches to the bilateral energy partnership”, the Indian Embassy said in a statement.
The three facilities will have a combined renewable energy capacity of 2,230 kilowatts and will be located on islands near the northern city of Jaffna, not far from India’s southern coast.
China and India are competing for major infrastructure projects in Sri Lanka, which is currently emerging from its worst economic crisis since independence from Britain in 1948.
Beijing is also Sri Lanka’s largest bilateral lender, accounting for about 10 percent of the island nation’s $46 billion external debt at the time of a government default at the peak of the crisis in 2022.
(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)
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