Monday 24 April 2017

Sri Lanka's IOC unit keeps economy oiled

ECONOMYNEXT - Lanka IOC, a unit of Indian Oil Corporation is maintaining deliveries to its network of fuel stations, a top official said as pumps ran dry in distributors of state-run Ceylon Petroleum Corporation amid a strike.

Lanka IOC owns operates about a third of the retail fuel market in the country, after a monopoly of the CPC was broken in a privatization drive, vastly improving the quality of fuel and fuel stations.

A common user facility Ceylon Petroleum Storage Terminals, in which Lanka IOC, which operates in Colombo has also been hit by strike action.

An LIOC official said the firm was transporting fuel from a tank farm in Trincomalee in the north east of the country.

Unions are opposing a joint development of remaining tanks in Trincomalee port, which they say is further privatization of state assets.

A strike leader claimed that reduced fuel distribution would boost the economy.

Strike leaders who have had links to Sri Lanka Freedom Party and the Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna have opposed privatization, and have wanted them kept under the control of the elected ruling class ensuring that the SOEs like Ceylon Petroleum Corporation is overstaffed and rife in procurement corruption.

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