Four Chinese companies awarded contract to construct expressway to Ratnapura

Friday, 22 December 2017 00:05 - - {{hitsCtrl.values.hits}}

The Cabinet this week approved the awarding of a contract for the construction of the Ruwanpura Expressway from the Kahatuduwa entrance to the Southern Expressway up to Pelmadulla via Ratnapura.

Higher Education and Highways Minister Lakshman Kiriella said Cabinet approval was granted to call for proposals from the China National Technical Import and Export Corporation to construct the first segment of the expressway from Kahatuduwa to Ingiriya.

The expressway to Ratnapura will be built in four stages and the four Chinese companies have been awarded the contracts to build the four sections.

Accordingly, the China National Technical Import and Export Corporation (CNTIC) was awarded the construction of a 26.30 km stretch from Kahatuduwa to Ingiriya in the first stage.

Section Two of the 21 km stretch from Ingiriya to Kahengama will be given to the China National Aero-Technology International Engineering Corporation (CATIC-ENG). China Harbor Engineering Company Ltd. (CHEC) was awarded the contract to construct the 12.70 km third section from Kahengama to Bela and the 13.90 km Bela to Pelmadulla segment was given to Hunan Construction Engineering Group Corporation (HCEGC).

The construction of the first section from Kahatuduwa to Ingiriya will commence soon and the expressway is expected to be completed in three years, Minister Kiriella said.

The sixth expressway, designated as E06, will link the Kahathuduwa exit on the Southern Expressway with Pelmadulla, a major city in the Sabaragamuwa Province, via Ratnapura, the provincial capital of the Sabaragamuwa Province.

It is anticipated that the new expressway will reduce commuting time between Colombo and Ratnapura to 45 minutes and Colombo and Pelmadulla to one hour.