On July 10 local time, the commissioning ceremony for the Thambuttegama Water Supply Project, constructed by CGC Sri Lanka Branch, was held in Sri Lanka. The ceremony was attended by Sri Lankan President Anura Kumara Dissanayake; Qi Zhenhong, Chinese Ambassador to Sri Lanka, and his wife; Susil Ranasinghe, Sri Lanka's Minister of Housing, Construction and Water Supply; Wasantha Samarasinghe, Minister of Trade, Commerce, Food Security and Cooperative Development; as well as local government officials.
Chinese Ambassador to Sri Lanka Qi Zhenhong (left), Sri Lankan President Anura Kumara Dissanayake (center), and Sri Lanka's Minister of Housing, Construction and Water Supply Susil Ranasinghe (right)
Ambassador Qi Zhenhong, together with Minister Susil Ranasinghe and Minister Wasantha Samarasinghe, jointly unveiled the project to mark its completion and commencement of operations. In his remarks, Minister Ranasinghe warmly congratulated all parties on the successful completion and commissioning of the project, expressed appreciation for China's long-standing support for the development of Sri Lanka's water supply sector, and highly commended CGC for honoring its contractual commitments and ensuring smooth project implementation during Sri Lanka's challenging period, demonstrating the responsibility and commitment of Chinese enterprises. Ambassador Qi stressed the importance of ensuring effective post-completion management and operational support so that the project can continue to operate safely and reliably while delivering lasting benefits to local communities.
The Thambuttegama Water Supply Project is a key Belt and Road cooperation project between China and Sri Lanka. It was completed and handed over on June 30, finishing construction 40 days ahead of schedule. During construction, the project incorporated integrated Chinese technologies and proven expertise, adopting advanced water supply processes along with Chinese-manufactured water treatment equipment, electromechanical equipment and automated control systems. Construction was carried out in strict accordance with high standards and quality requirements, significantly improving the efficiency, safety and reliability of the water supply system. The project team also actively promoted local employment by creating more than 1,000 jobs. Now in operation, the project will further improve local water supply conditions, providing safer, more stable and more reliable drinking water to more than 90,000 residents while making an important contribution to local economic development and improvements in people's well-being.
The successful completion and commissioning of the project attracted widespread attention from media outlets in China and abroad. Xinhua News Agency, China Media Group, Phoenix TV and Sri Lankan local media all reported on the project's achievements.
