Lankan petroleum workers protest leasing out oil tanks to India

The news about leasing out oil storage tanks in the China Bay Oil Tank Farm in Trincomalee to India  broke with the last week’s announcement of Sri Lanka’s Prime Minister Ranil Wickramasinghe’s visit to India this week.

The Lanka Indian Oil Corporation (LIOC), which is the Lankan subsidiary of the Indian Oil Corporation, already has 15 tanks in the lower tank farm, out of 99 Britain built oil storage tanks in the Port. The two countries reached into this agreement in 2003.

According to sources, the new agreement scheduled to be signed during Primer Wickramasinghe’s visit to Delhi will see the remaining 84 oil storage tanks developed under a joint venture in the strategically important Trincomalee Port.

The Secretary of the Ceylon Petroleum Common Workers Union D.J. Rajakaruna told IBNS that if the government reached into this agreement it would badly affect the country’s economy and sovereignty.

He threatened to launch an isladwide strike in the government-owned refinery stations, if the government continues with its decision to allow India to handle 14- oil tankers and jointly managing the rest of the tanks in the farm.

Meanwhile, the Minister of Petroleum Resources Development Chandima Weerakkody told the media that the strike by the Ceylon Petroleum Corporation (CPC) Unions’ Collective was baseless and the government had not taken any decision over the oil tank farm in the Trincomalee Port.

“The Trincomalee tanks were given to India for 35 years at a cost of 100,000 USD per annum and the payment had been made for 15 years,” he said adding that out of the 99 tanks 10 would be taken back.

“The rest of the oil tanks in the farm will be developed under a joint venture with the LIOC and CPC,” he said.

He claimed that the trade unionists were not aware of the reality but making false accusations.

(Reporting by Shanika Sriyananda)