Sri Lanka runs out of cash to buy oil

Sri Lankan energy minister Udaya Gammanpila said that the state-run petroleum company has run out of cash to buy oil, which has seriously impacted the energy sector of the country.

Gammanpila further said that Ceylon Petroleum Corporation (CPC) continued to hemorrhage cash, adding: “Earlier, we were short of dollars to import oil. Now we don’t have the rupees to buy the dollars.” According to him, the corporation lost 83 billion rupees ($415 million) last year.

Due to the country’s worsening situation, several thermal power stations were closed due to a fuel shortage on Friday.

The minister stated that a severe shortage is inevitable unless the government increases prices or the treasury offers a bailout.

Diesel is the most commonly used fuel for public transport, and motorists. Reportedly, there are long queues at understocked pumps in Sri Lanka.

Recently, the Russia-Ukraine crisis has affected the prices of the petroleum products across the world.