NEW DELHI: Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi will launch the construction of a long-delayed solar power project during his upcoming visit to Sri Lanka, an official said on Friday.
Vikram Misri, the secretary of India’s foreign ministry, said Modi and Sri Lankan President Anura Kumara Dissanayake will witness a virtual groundbreaking ceremony for their joint-venture solar power project in the island’s northeast on April 5.
The proposed 120-megawatt venture in the northeastern coastal district of Trincomalee has stalled for years, but New Delhi backed it as a joint project between the neighbouring nations.
“This, in many senses, is going to be a milestone in the bilateral partnership,” Misri told reporters in New Delhi.
“They will together dedicate several projects that are being built with Indian assistance in Sri Lanka and will also witness the exchange of several MoUs pertaining to energy connectivity, digitisation, defence, health, and multisectoral grant assistance.”
The pair will watch the virtual groundbreaking from Sri Lankan capital Colombo. The costs of the project were not immediately available.
The groundbreaking, a day before Modi concludes his two-night visit to Sri Lanka, comes as Colombo grapples with the competing interests of its powerful northern neighbour and China, its largest lender.
