A senior official from the United States government has announced that the U.S. will participate in the project to relocate the Male' Commercial Port to Thilafushi.
The announcement was made by Paul Kapoor, the Assistant Secretary of State for South and Central Asian Affairs, who is currently on an official visit to the Maldives.
"Visited the Thilafushi Port project site to understand the vision for a central logistical and distribution hub for international commerce in Maldives. The United States looks forward to working with Maldives on Thilafushi port project and unlocking its potential for long-term economic growth," he wrote in a post on X.
During his visit, Kapoor met with President Mohamed Muizzu, Economic Minister Mohamed Saeed, and Foreign Minister Iruthisham Adam. His visit follows a prior inspection of the port project on May 20 by Nicole Chulick, the Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary of the Bureau of South and Central Asian Affairs at the State Department.
During her trip, Chulick met with senior officials from the Maldives Ports Limited (MPL), toured the Male' Commercial Port, and visited Thilafushi. She also expressed the United States' interest in participating in infrastructure projects across the Maldives.
Under the current administration's policy to relocate the commercial port to Thilafushi, the design and survey work for the first phase of the project was awarded to China Harbour Engineering Company (CHEC) last February.
This initial phase, designated by MPL as the "Local Harbor Relief Project," includes the construction of a 650-meter quay wall, a 125-meter jetty, X-ray facilities, automated resources, and a bonded warehouse.
According to MPL, CHEC was contracted specifically for the design phase with a five-month deadline. MPL stated that physical construction of the port will commence once the design work is completed and a final price for the construction phase is negotiated and agreed upon.
