Mitsubishi, a giant in the Japanese business sector, has decided to end its operations in Sri Lanka next month.
Sources have stated that the temporary suspension of Sri Lanka’s external debt payment and the sudden cancellation of new Japanese project proposals including the light rail project, the natural liquid gas project, adverse international ratings and economic outlook are among the factors that led to Mitsubishi’s decision to end its operations in Sri Lanka after sixty years.
Mitsubishi, a major partner in bilateral relations between Sri Lanka and Japan, has been a major stakeholder in some infrastructure projects in Sri Lanka for nearly sixty years.
The decision to close the Colombo office of Mitsubishi on March 31 was a piece of shocking news to the private sector and local and foreign companies have said that Sri Lanka will suffer a big setback due to this decision of Mitsubishi.
Japan is Sri Lanka’s largest lender and as of September last year, Sri Lanka owed Japan 2.46 billion US dollars.
Sources have stated that the Sri Lanka office was one of the first offices that Mitsubishi opened abroad and Mitsubishi has contributed to the business of many Sri Lankan companies.
Mitsubishi was a key operating partner in several projects funded by the Japan International Cooperation Agency.
Although the Colombo office of Mitsubishi Company has only twenty staff, the company’s business and project sectors have provided livelihood to thousands of Sri Lankans. (Lankadeepa)
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