Colombo, Nov 26 (IANS): Sri Lanka will invest in maintenance, repair and operations (MRO) facilities at the China-built Mattala Rajapaksa International Airport (MRIA) in the country's Southern province, local media citing a government official said here on Thursday.

State Minister of Aviation and Export Zones Development DV Chanaka was quoted in state-owned Daily News saying that, "The government will initially fund 50 million US dollars to build the key infrastructure at MRIA for the MRO facility early next year."

Chanaka said that once basic MRO infrastructure has been built by State-Owned Enterprises (SOEs) Airport and Aviation Sri Lanka (AASL) and SriLankan Airlines, the government would call for international tenders for the operation of the MRO facility, Xinhua reported.

Chanaka said that the government hopes the MRO facility will become a major foreign exchange earner and generate well-paying jobs for local youth.

The MRIA is located around 30 kms away from the China-built Hambantota Port, both of which are connected to the commercial capital of Colombo through the southern expressway.