India signs MoU with Sri Lanka to build 3 windmills in Palk Strait

India has signed an MoU to build three Sri Lankan wind farms on three islands between the two countries, after the project was taken away from China.

A $12 million project to build wind turbines on three small islands in the Palk Strait between southern India and Sri Lanka was awarded to a Chinese firm in 2019, with funding from the Asian Development Bank (ADB).

But after India complained about Chinese activity very close to its coast, the work on the project was stopped and the project on the islets of Nainativu, Analaitivu and Delft, was later scrapped.

A joint statement, issued by External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar, after his visit to Colombo, said that the MoU had been signed to build the installations.

Replacement for ADB funding

Sri Lankan officials said that India had agreed to provide funding, which would replace the ADB.

Last week, the Chinese ambassador in Sri Lanka Qi Zhenhong expressed Beijing’s displeasure over the scuttling of the project and warned that it would send a negative signal to potential foreign investors.

Also read: Jaishankar calls on Lankan Prez, PM, assures them of India’s cooperation in crisis

Sri Lanka is facing an acute economic and energy crisis, triggered due to the shortage of foreign exchange. India recently announced to extend a $1 billion line of credit to Sri Lanka as part of its financial assistance to the country to deal with the economic crisis.

Jaishankar is in Colombo to hold bilateral talks with the country’s top leadership and attend the seven-nation BIMSTEC summit.

Jaishankar’s visit to Colombo is taking place at a time when the public outrage over the Lankan government’s inefficiency in handling the crisis has come out in the open.

This is his first visit to the island nation since India extended the economic relief package.

Besides India and Sri Lanka, the BIMSTEC comprises Bangladesh, Myanmar, Thailand, Nepal and Bhutan.

The summit is being hosted by Sri Lanka in its capacity as the chair of the grouping BIMSTEC (Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation).

Also read: Jaishankar lands in Lanka, discusses crisis with counterpart

Prime Minister Narendra Modi will attend the virtual summit of the BIMSTEC grouping on March 30, which is expected to focus on expanding economic engagement among its member countries.

Amidst the current foreign exchange crisis, people are holding protests and vigils urging immediate solutions to rid them of fuel and gas queues and enduring long hours of power cuts.