State moves to take Kulhudhuffushi council land for seaport expansion

Land under Kulhudhuffushi City Council in HDh. Kulhudhuffushi is set to become state property for the seaport expansion, under a government notice published in the Gazette on 5 November 2026.

The notice, No. (IUL)13-D1/13/2026/219, is listed under the Ministry of Finance and Public Enterprises. It relies on Article 56-2 (n) and (r) of the Decentralisation Act (Law 7/2010), as amended for the 19th time.

Which land is affected

An attached land detail identifies the site as the Kulhudhuffushi Industrial Zone area. This includes land leased to STO for its Northern Distribution Centre, and land leased to Handy Holdings Private Limited for cold storage.

The land detail does not state how much land is being taken. A separate attachment, titled KPL Land Use Plan 2026 - v2 (revised Nov 2026), shows a port land area of 57,934 sqm and a harbour basin of 55,479 sqm.

Plans for the port

According to the land detail, the Kulhudhuffushi Seaport expansion project has three components:

• pushing out the quay wall of the existing multipurpose port, which handles containers and general cargo
• dredging the harbour deeper so larger vessels can call
• operating the port as a distribution hub for containers brought into the region by anchor (feeder) service, offering a free zone, warehousing and bonded warehousing

Public comment period

Comments or objections may be sent to the ministry in writing within 14 days of 5 November.

Legal obligations and a related dispute

Under the law, where land falls within a council's jurisdiction, information and documents on it must be given to the council, the council must be consulted, and the public's views must be sought.

The same law was recently used to transfer 14 plots out of Malé City Council's jurisdiction, a move the council is challenging in court.