Asia/Pacific News
Sri Lankan Refinery Closed
Sri Lanka's only oil refinery has closed after a floating pipeline at the country's Colombo port was damaged, Reuters reports.
Officials closed the 50,000 barrels-per-day Sapugaskanda refinery on Saturday, and petroleum ministry spokesman W.P.M. Pradeep Roshen told Reuters the damage will take "a few days" to repair.
"Engineers have been working since Friday to repair the damaged pipeline and are waiting for spares from abroad," he said.
Traders said the shutdown of the refinery, which is part of the state-run Ceylon Petroleum Corp. (CPC), should not have a big impact on the Asian diesel market because demand in Sri Lanka is lower than usual due to monsoon season.
Ananda Palitha, a secretary of Sri Lankan trade union Jathika Sevaka Sangamaya (JSS) said the refinery may have to remain shut for about 12 days, according to Sri Lankan news network News First.
"There is a crisis situation looming," he said.
Government officials said there is no likelihood of a shortage and said an oil tanker carrying 35,000 metric tonnes and another tanker with 40,000 tonnes of diesel arrived in the country in recent days, according to the Daily News of Sri Lanka.
Refinery manager Neil Jayasekera issued a statement denying allegations that the substitution of Arabian Light crude oil for Iranian Light has reduced its capacity by 50 percent, leading to the shutdown.
Jayasekera said the refinery has reduced its use of Iranian oil due to economic sanctions on that country.
