Attention in Sri Lanka’s energy sector is turning to the modernisation of the Sapugaskanda refinery after a Cabinet-appointed negotiating committee recommended cancelling the proposed Sinopec refinery project in Hambantota.
Deputy Minister Chathuranga Abeysinghe was reported to have raised concerns about the risks to the Ceylon Petroleum Corporation (CPC) and national energy security during a parliamentary Committee on Public Finance (CoPF) discussion on 10 November.
The dispute over access to the domestic market has underlined, according to analysts, that the terms of an investment matter as much as its size.
Abeysinghe was reported to have stressed that any major project must not leave the state-owned corporation exposed or weaken the country’s fuel security.
With the Hambantota plan set aside, the government is expected to rely on an effort it has already pursued separately, which seeks private-sector participation in modernising and expanding the Sapugaskanda refinery.
Supporters of that initiative believe it could raise domestic refining capacity while keeping the CPC’s strategic interests at the forefront.
Policy observers say an effective response would combine firm scrutiny of unsuitable proposals with faster and more transparent evaluation of bankable alternatives.
They describe the committee’s recommendation as only a first step in building a sound refining strategy.
