Phase II of Colombo West International Terminal (CWIT) at the Port of Colombo was inaugurated on September 30, bringing its yearly capacity to 3.2 million twenty-foot equivalent units (TEU), twice its previous level.
Adani Ports and Special Economic Zone (APSEZ) said the expansion raised capacity from 1.6 million TEU and enabled three container vessels of ultra-large size to berth simultaneously. The company put the investment in the terminal at $750 million.
APSEZ reported that CWIT reached two million TEU in its initial 18 months of operation. The company said the expanded terminal is fully automated.
APSEZ added that the expanded capacity is equivalent to nearly 25 per cent of the Port of Colombo’s targeted annual capacity of 13 million TEU by 2028.
The Port of Colombo handled a record 8,291,178 TEU in 2025, up from 7,792,069 TEU in 2024, according to the Sri Lanka Ports Authority (SLPA).
Port-wide throughput reached 4,444,034 TEU in the first half of 2026, an increase of 11.9 per cent from 3,972,053 TEU in the corresponding period of 2025.
CWIT operates under a 35-year agreement with APSEZ, John Keells Holdings and the SLPA to build, operate and transfer the terminal. The partners signed the agreement in 2021.
The terminal began operations in March 2025. It has a 1,400-metre quay and a water depth of 20 metres.
