Colombo, Jan 17: Sri Lanka is looking at the possibility of getting furnace oil from Indian Oil Corporation for power generation as supplies from state-run Ceylon Petroleum Corporation have been erratic for a few days, a minister has said.
Power Minister Gamini Lokuge told the media today that the fuel available for power generation is sufficient for only three days and therefore, attempts will be made to obtain fuel from the Indian Oil Corporation (IOC) company.
“We are looking for alternatives,” Minister Lokuge said.
“We are looking whether we can take some furnace oil from the LIOC for the next few days,” he told reporters.
State-run Ceylon Electricity Board has been experiencing fuel disruption and imposing power cuts.
The utility had published a load shedding schedule with approval from the regulator, but it was taken off the website.
Minister Lokuge said there would be no power cuts till January 18, but there had been media reports of loss of power in some areas
He said a meeting will be convened on Tuesday.
“Till Jan 22 we have to somehow find a way to get oil for power generation,” he added.
The CEB is running on marginal capacity after a 300MW coal plant broke down, economynext.com reported.
