COLOMBO: Sri Lanka’s sole refinery faces temporary closure this week for up to four days over a delayed crude oil delivery that coincides with plans for routine maintenance, officials said yesterday.
The decades-old 50,000 barrels-per-day oil (bpd) refinery is configured to run on Iranian crude and has been scrambling to fill a shortfall after supplies were hit by Western sanctions.
State-run Ceylon Petroleum Corporation was expected to receive a crude parcel of 1 million barrels on Saturday, Sri Lanka’s petroleum resource minister Anura Priyadarsha Yapa said.
The supplier missed the original delivery date because of a problem with the vessel, the minister said.
“Later they confirmed they would deliver on the 16th,” the minister added. “If the ship doesn’t arrive by May 16, we can’t produce.” Reuters
