COLOMBO, May 18- A Sri Lankan company is planning to build the largest mall in the post-war country in an effort to cash in on a booming tourist industry, Xinhua news agency reported.
The Abans Group in collaboration with Silver Needle Hospitality has signed an agreement with AEDAS, an internationally reputed award winning architectural firm to lead the design for a proposed US$100 million five-star mega mall opposite the Beira Lake in the capital of Colombo.
Construction will commence early next year and is expected to be completed by 2016, a statement said.
The Abans Lifestyle Mall will be the first and only lifestyle mall in Sri Lanka on par with mega super malls in Singapore and Dubai.
“As this is our first joint venture development in Asia, it was crucial we selected a high-calibre architect who understood our desire for creating and engaging an iconic landmark that meets the professional and leisure accommodation needs of business travellers and enhances the Colombo lifestyle,” a spokesperson from Silver Needle Hospitality was quoted as saying.
Since the end of a three-decade war in 2009, Sri Lanka’s tourism industry has grown tremendously, attracting over one million tourists in 2012 and earning more than a billion dollars for the first time in history.
The Sri Lankan government hopes to reach 2.5 million tourist arrivals by 2016.
-BERNAMA
