With operations spanning Sri Lanka and Bangladesh, the Sino Lanka Group is active across nine sectors, including property development, hospitality, education, healthcare, renewable energy, automotive (EVs), financial services, information technology, and advanced agriculture. The Group’s work in these markets reflects a long-term approach to diversification: building partnerships, creating value, and investing in sustainable enterprise. In Sri Lanka, its presence is most visible through brands such as Radisson Blu Galle, Radisson Kandy, Radisson Colombo, Evolution Auto, and Universal College Lanka (UCL), which delivers Monash University’s foundation and diploma programmes in Sri Lanka, offering students a pathway to complete their degrees in Australia. This is the foundation that Dhiren Kundanmal, Managing Director of Sino Lanka Group, is now strengthening, with a focus on sustainable growth, regional scale, and relevance to how people live, learn, move, and consume energy.
With shifts in tourism patterns, how is the Sino Lanka Group adapting its hospitality portfolio and development plans to capture new opportunities?
We’ve operated in the star-class segment for nearly a decade, starting with OZO Colombo in 2014, followed by Kandy and Amari Galle. In 2022, we rebranded these under the Radisson portfolio. Post-pandemic, travel patterns have changed. Guests now seek richer, more diverse experiences, moving from price-led to value-driven choices. We’ve embraced this shift by focusing on both domestic and international guests and shaping our offerings around service and experience.
Sri Lanka’s visitor mix has diversified as well. Arrivals from short-haul markets, especially India, which now accounts for about 27%, have grown sharply, and we’ve established our own presence there to strengthen that market. Long-haul arrivals from Australia, the UK, and Germany are also recovering, while Russia remains a key winter source market. These trends have pushed us to take a more flexible approach to hospitality. Across our portfolio, we cater to a wide range of guests, from upscale properties to newer formats that appeal to experiential and extended-stay travellers.
Given the company’s focus on agility and a worry-free experience, how do you see Sino Lanka Group’s property development approach evolving in terms of project delivery, partnerships, and technology?
We’ve always recognised the importance of technology in modern hospitality. Recently, we partnered with a homegrown company to develop a real-time AI chatbot that lets guests interact directly with our properties. We’re the first hotel group in Sri Lanka to introduce this, and it continues to evolve. Alongside it, we’ve deployed tools for real-time feedback, allowing us to respond instantly rather than wait for online reviews. On the backend, technology supports pricing and inventory management, keeping operations consistent and efficient across properties.
These initiatives align with how our strategy has evolved post-COVID. The high-end segment remains strong, but demand from mid-tier and experiential travellers has grown rapidly. To meet that shift, we launched Sesaya Poshtel and Bistro, a boutique property for guests seeking authentic, affordable stays with comfort and convenience. Sesaya also offers coworking and communal spaces for long-stay and remote travellers, and we want to develop the concept in destinations like Ahangama, Weligama, Ella, and the cultural triangle.
What are the major challenges that the Sino Lanka Group faces in large-scale solar projects and how are you addressing them?
Sri Lanka’s renewable energy sector continues to face regulatory uncertainty. Frequent changes to tariffs and policies create challenges once projects are underway, making long-term planning difficult. We address this by engaging early with the Ceylon Electricity Board and the Sustainable Energy Authority and building flexibility into our financial models to absorb moderate policy shifts.
Commercial viability is another concern. Current contract tenures and tariff structures often hinder viable project returns, which discourages private and foreign investment. That’s why we’ve been advocating for bankable power purchase agreements and exploring CPPA models, such as power wheeling or battery-energy-storage systems, to keep projects financially sustainable and attractive to investors over the long run.
Operationally, curtailment, voltage fluctuations, and grid constraints have also grown. Through our RadiantIQ platform, we’ve introduced advanced monitoring and predictive analytics to forecast curtailment events and adjust inverter settings in real time. This helps maintain consistent output even in a changing policy and grid environment.
What market, regulatory, or infrastructure barriers do you see as most critical for EV adoption and how is Sino Lanka preparing to overcome or mitigate them?
It really comes down to policy stability. When imports reopened earlier this year, tariffs were raised twice in a short span, which pushed electric vehicle prices close to those of combustion engines. These sudden changes have created uncertainty for both consumers and investors. We’ve also seen how a few high-profile customs disputes have made people hesitant to buy EVs in case rules change again. Moving forward, we need clarity and a consistent policy framework for this industry to grow.
At Sino Lanka Group, and through our joint venture, Evolution Auto, we’re working closely with our international partners and the government to help define that framework. We’re now bringing in models that strike the right balance. Under Evolution Auto, our portfolio already spans Mahindra Electric tuk-tuks and two-wheelers such as ATHER and REVOLT to cars from XPENG, IM, and AVATR, and commercial vehicles from KYC and RIDDARA. These are globally recognised brands, and we’ve built a strong local base across every segment.
Looking ahead, what regions or sectors is the Sino Lanka Group focusing on for expansion? How do you plan to balance entering new markets with strengthening your presence in current ones?
Diversification has always been our biggest strength. Operating across several industries gives us flexibility when markets shift or policies change. Each business is built to stand on its own while contributing to long-term value. Collectively, our focus is on understanding customers: how they buy, what keeps them loyal, and how we can serve them better.
A good example is our renewable energy work. With new installations slowing, Sri Lanka’s 1.5 gigawatts of rooftop capacity now needs maintenance and optimisation. Through our subsidiary, RadiantIQ, we’re helping operators monitor and enhance performance while building long-term partnerships. We also manage solar plants for blue-chip clients and are expanding into battery storage, targeting 25–30 megawatt hours of capacity by March 2026.
Beyond renewables, we’re building momentum in electric vehicles, property development, and healthcare. They follow the same approach we’ve taken in hospitality, healthcare, education, and financial services: building steadily and focusing on value. Our goal is to build that same trust and recognition across every sector — to create brands that become household names in their own right.