The government is set to revive the Trincomalee oil tank farm harnessing maximum benefits for the countrys’ economy as the state is holding the ownership of majority of oil tanks.
President Ranil Wickremesinghe has directed the Minister of Power & Energy and relevant officials to swiftly initiate a plan to revive the Trincomalee oil tank farm and incorporate it into the country’s economy.
He gave these directives during an inspection visit to the Lanka Indian Oil Company (LIOC) oil tank farm in Trincomalee yesterday afternoon (March 03).
The Head of State emphasized the urgency of implementing the Trincomalee Development Program by renovating the 61 tanks of the Upper Tank Farm (UTF), which remained unused for more than several decades.
Sri Lanka’s Trinco Petroleum Terminal Ltd, a joint venture between state-run Ceylon Petroleum Corporation and India’ Lanka IOC, plans to invest up to US$ 70 million in refurbishing 61 oil tanks in Trincomalee, an official said.
TPTL has control of 51 tanks in a World War II era tank farm in a 600 acre land by the Trincomalee port in North Eastern Sri Lanka. The tank farm has 99 tanks of which 15 are operated by Lanka IOC. The balance is expected to be used by Ceylon Petroleum Corporation.( CPC).
In the first phase 10 tanks with a capacity of 10,000 metric tonnes each will be refurbished and pipelines for white and black oils will be laid Managing Director of Lanka IOC Manoj Gupta disclosed.
Phase 1 is estimated to cost between $15 to 20 million and is expected to be completed in 2023.
Upon his arrival, President Wickremesinghe was welcomed by LIOC’s Managing Director Manoj Gupta at the LIOC’s Lower Tank Farm area along with other LIOC senior officials and team members, who briefed him on the operations of the oil tank farm.
The President also visited the Lubricating Oil Blending Plant belonging to the Indian Oil Company, which has an annual capacity of 18,000 KL and fulfils the country’s lubricating oil needs.
During the visit, the delegation also inspected Sri Lanka’s first locally-developed Grease Manufacturing Plant, which was built and launched by LIOC.
With a capacity of 3,000 MT per annum, this plant has the potential to meet the entire island’s demand for grease, thereby saving valuable foreign exchange that is currently being spent on grease imports.
The President examined the bowser filling facility of LIOC, which operates 24/7 as needed, to ensure that the country’s energy needs are consistently and efficiently met.
Additionally, the President toured the Upper Tank Farm (UTF) section at the Trincomalee tank farms. The area includes 61 storage tanks that are currently being renovated by Trinco Petroleum Terminal Pvt Ltd (TPTL), which is a partnership between Ceylon Petroleum and LIOC.
