The U.S. announced a $553 million project Wednesday to build a deep-water shipping container terminal in Sri Lanka’s Port of Colombo as it competes with China in international development financing.

The project is billed as providing critical infrastructure for the South Asian nation with the potential to “transform Colombo into a world-class logistics hub at the intersection of major shipping routes and emerging markets,” according to the U.S. International Development Finance Corp.

The DFC loan of $553 million for the West Container Terminal will “expand its shipping capacity, creating greater prosperity for Sri Lanka — without adding to sovereign debt — while at the same strengthening the position of our allies across the region,” said DFC Chief Executive Officer Scott Nathan.