(Lanka-e-News -05.Sep.2016, 7.20PM) Supply of petroleum to Sri Lanka, is a thriving business for a few oil trading companies and for their local agents in Sri Lanka. Of course the majority of these oil trading companies are engaged in a fair business with Ceylon Petroleum Corporation, while there are very few companies who have made CPC suffer losses in multi millions giving immense suffering to the general public by way of repeatedly supplying contaminated or substandard fuel or simply “dirty Fuel”.
Dirty fuel supplied to CPC and distributed by CPC in the past have played havoc from paralyzing the electrical power generation to bringing running vehicles to a grinding halt paralyzing public and private transportation causing millions of damage to the state as well as private assets. Below is the dirty game of the even dirtier business of the Minister in charge of the Ministry in Charge in collusion with whoever Chairman /Managing Director of the CPC followed by a shipment of dirty fuel supplied to CPC.
With a supply of a batch of dirty fuel leading to a critical public uproar the first thing the minister in charge of the Ceylon Petroleum Corporation does is blaming the supplier in order to give eyewash to the unassuming public. Susil Premajayantha brilliantly performed this when he brought that infamous consignment of dirty petrol in 2011.
After a while, like everything else, people forget the episode of dirty fuel. Then the Minister starts the business with the supplier of the dirty fuel. For the information of the general public, Vitol the notorious dirty fuel supplier has been reinstated successfully for the third time as a “clean oil” supplier by CPC after a shameless deal by the Minister/Ministry officials and the higher-ups in CPC.
First episode of Dirty Fuel Supply by Vitol in 2009.
Vitol delivered a shipment of 20,000 metric tons of substandard Fuel Oil in Aug 2009. This fuel which was imported by CPC for the use of Independent Power Plants caused machinery breakdown resulting in the closure of the power plants which lead to the level of a national crisis. The Minister tried to defend the supplier for about three weeks and was ultimately forced to blacklist Vitol only in late August 2009. The estimated loss to the country was above USD 10 million.
Vitol and the Minister were silent for some time. After the deal was clinched between the Minister and Vitol, Supplier was reinstated in December 2011.
Over and above the private deal between the Minister and Vitol, supplier was fined USD 150,000. Once again supplier was in business as usual.
Second Episode of Dirty Fuel Supply by Vitol in 2011
Vitol delivered the second batch of dirty fuel, this time it was 20,000 metric tons of diesel, in August 2011. Cars, Lorries, trains and over 1000 busses were brought to a halt. Public uproar and media pressure was unavoidable; Minister this time was forced to say Vitol was “permanently blacklisted”.
Loss to CPC and the public was in millions this time too. However, as usual supplier waited in silence till the next Minister took over the Ministry of Petroleum.
The Minister cleaned up the ‘so called’ permanently blacklisted Vitol, and re-listed as a supplier with CPC after his deal was successfully struck. However, to impress the public, CPC arranged to publish that Vitol paid a fine for the losses suffered.
Third Episode of Dirty Fuel Supply by Vitol in 2014
Vitol, who had been blacklisted twice and re-listed twice, supplied the third shipment of dirty fuel, this time, Low Sulphur Fuel Oil for the use of Kerawalapitiya Power Plant of Ceylon Electricity Board. Power generation came to a standstill as the Fuel was contaminated with water and used lubricating oil.
Vitol was adamant when they were asked to take the cargo back by the CPC. But when Vitol blatantly refused CPC’s request, the Minister humbled himself and CPC higher-ups meekly shut up.
This shipment was subsequently sold by CPC at a colossal loss.
The first re-instating business opened for the incumbent minister is re-instating the infamous Vitol who supplied three shipments of dirty fuel in the recent past. Supplier’s representative met the Minister and CPC Chairman and discussed the “modalities” of the business. After an agreement was reached to the satisfaction of all parties, the deal was clinched and instructions were given by the Minister to reinstate notorious Vitol for the third time.
Vitol will be back in the business as usual!
The next shipment of “dirty fuel” will arrive shortly!
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by (2016-09-05 14:02:51)
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2 discussion on this news
w hy is this racket repeating? Forget about the past (MaRa and forty thieves).Why don't Sira look into this?
-- by suri on 2016-09-06
I think previous audit manager Sarath Perera was transferred form Ceylon Petroleum head office to refinery last week for this kind of dirty games.
-- by Giles Pream on 2016-09-08
