The Port of Trincomalee is the third-largest natural harbor in the world and has about 10 times the water and land area of the Port of Colombo. Trincomalee Port is a natural harbor located in the Bay of Trincomalee. It is also known as Kodiyar Bay. The port consists of 1630 hectares of water and 5261 hectares of land. The access channel to the port is 500 meters wide. Many local and international traders and explorers have passed through this port. Trincomalee was tentatively identified to cater for bulk and breakbulk cargo and port-related industrial activities including heavy industries, tourism, and agriculture, etc.
Trincomalee Port is a unique and historically important port in Sri Lanka. Formerly known as Gokanna Port, Trincomalee Port is the largest natural harbor in Sri Lanka. The Portuguese, Dutch and British fought in sea battles to control and conquer the port. The port, which has been active as a trading hub connecting the East and the West since ancient times, is a hilly area covered with mountains and has a high level of capability to protect ships from monsoon winds. Therefore, the port of Trincomalee was a unique port in the security and trade of the Indian Ocean under the Western nations. It was formerly a British naval base and was taken over by the Government of Ceylon in 1956 for development as a commercial port.
At present, SLPA is in the process to re-develop Trincomalee as a metropolis growth center.
