Remove taxes on fuel or increase fuel prices - Gammanpila

COLOMBO (News 1st); Sri Lanka's Energy Minister Udaya Gammanpila on Friday (18) announced that a request was made to the Finance Ministry to remove all taxes imposed on fuel or to increase the fuel process.

The Minister was speaking to reporters in Colombo while highlighting the losses incurred by the Ceylon Petroleum Corporation.

The Energy Minister told reporters that the Ceylon Petroleum Corporation is selling fuel in the market at a loss.

He said the loss incurred per liter of petrol, & Diesel are as follows:

Petrol (92 Octane): Rs. 19/-

Petrol (95 Octane): Rs. 17/-

Diesel: Rs. 52/-

Super Diesel: Rs. 35/-

Kerosene: Rs. 63/-

Gammanpila said the Ceylon Petroleum Corporation incurs a loss of more than Rs. 500 Million per day.

He said the loss of 2021 is approximately Rs. 83,000 Million or Rs. 83 Billion, adding the CPC cannot continue incurring losses.

He warned that if the government does not lift the taxes or increase the fuel prices, a fuel shortage in the country is inevitable.

Gammanpila revealed that on the 28th of January 2022, the Central Bank Governor informed the CPC that if the CPC cannot deliver rupees to purchase dollars, the Central Bank will not release dollars to purchase fuel.

He said the fuel shortage will arise solely due to the shortage of rupees and not dollars.

He said the Finance Ministry generates Rs. 368 Million daily from the taxes imposed on fuel and a request will be made to remove these taxes.