Sri Lankan Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa asked Russian billionaire Andrei Melnichenko to consider investing in the project of the port city of Colombo and the port of Hambantota. It is reported by the local newspaper Daily Mirror.
According to the report, Melnichenko said he would soon send a team to Sri Lanka to explore the possibility.
Earlier, the publication reported that the Russian billionaire in Sri Lanka visited the port city of Colombo on March 17. He was accompanied by a Sri Lankan-born British politician and former MEP Niranjan Deva.
The delegations spoke about the Colombo Special Economic Zone project, the progress of its construction and future developments. According to the newspaper, Melnichenko spoke positively about the project and was impressed by the strategic planning of the new economic zone.
RBC sent a request to Melnichenko's representative.
The Russian billionaire is ranked 95th on the Forbes list. His fortune as of March 18 is estimated at $ 17.9 billion.
Andrey Melnichenko owns the Siberian Coal Energy Company (SUEK) and EuroChem through the Cyprus-based AIM Capital. Both companies ended last year with a profit: SUEK's pre-tax profit amounted to $ 2 billion, Eurochem earned $ 1.8 billion in pre-tax profit.
