In November 2017, Water. Desalination + reuse (Faversham House) reported that Sri Lanka's development strategies and international trade ministry had requested proposals for seawater desalination at Hambantota. Bidders were to finance, build, run and maintain a 20,000 m³/day reverse osmosis plant for 50 years under a public-private partnership with the Board of Investment (BOI). The cost was roughly estimated at US$20 to 25 million. The BOI planned to take a quarter of the output. Proposals were due on 15 January 2018.
The report showed that smaller South Asian states also sought to procure desalination through private partners, leaving part of the demand risk with the operator.