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Thanks to its generosity to gas station owners, CPC bleeding to death, says FSP

Published

4 years ago

2022/09/2

The Ceylon Petroleum Corporation (CPC) will lose about Rs. 25 billion in the coming 12 months at current rates, if it does not adjust the commission paid to gas station owners, Education Secretary of the Frontline Socialist Party (FSP), Pubudu Jagoda, told The Island yesterday.Jagoda said that the CPC made losses, mainly due to the bad decisions of its management. “For example, the CPC gives a commission to the gas station owners. Until mid-2019, CPC paid 2.5 percent of the price of a litre of fuel as a commission. So, for example when a litre of 92 octane petrol was Rs. 117, the gas station owner made a commission of Rs. 2.92. They insisted that the percentage was not enough and in July 2019, and it was increased to 3%.

The CPC also decided to place upper and lower caps because they didn’t want to pay colossal amounts as commissions, in case fuel prices went through the roof,” Jagoda said.

The CPC also decided that for Octane 92 petrol, the upper cap would be Rs. 167 and the lower cap would be Rs. 117 . “So, no matter how much the price increased, the CPC only pays three percent of Rs. 167 as the commission per a litre of 92 Octane petrol. For Octane 95 petrol, the upper cap would be Rs. 184 and the lower cap would be Rs. 128. For auto diesel, the upper cap would be Rs. 121 and the lower cap would be Rs 95. For super diesel, the upper cap would be Rs. 145 and the lower cap would be Rs. 110,” he said.Jagoda said that fuel prices had been revised in December 2021. The price of 92 Octane petrol was increased to Rs. 177 a litre and 95 Octane to Rs. 207 a litre.

“Instead of capping them at 167 and 184, the CPC paid three percent of the new prices as commission to gas station owners. On 18 January 2022, the Deputy General Manager, Finance, figured out something was wrong and wrote to the General Manager asking him what could be done. The General Manager sent a circular to gas stations on 10 March 2022, saying that the CPC had overpaid them and asked the owners to return the amount. Four gas station owners met the Minister in charge, Gamini Lokuge, who insisted that there was no need to pay and buoyed by that gas station owners went to court and got an injunction against the circular,” Jagoda said.

At that time, the CPC was losing Rs. 80 million a day as a result, Jagoda said. Despite that, the CPC lawyers did not appear on the first Court date, and on the second Court date, they agreed to extend the injunction.

“On the third day, the injunction was lifted but the CPC did nothing to collect the money. The problem is many ministers, and senior officials, have gas stations and they profit from this. Still the CPC pays extra to gas station owners. If this is stopped, the CP can reduce the prices of 92 Octane petrol by Rs. 9.17 , 95 Octane petrol by Rs. 12 rupees, auto diesel by Rs. 9.27 rupees, and super diesel by Rs. 10.95. The CPC pays Rs. 67.9 million extra a day to gas stations. If this continues, at the current price, and volume, the CPC will lose 25 billion in the next 12 months,” Jagoda said.

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Maldivian President plants a sapling to mark 60 years of Sri Lanka–Maldives Diplomatic Relations

Published

14 mins ago

2026/05/4

Priyan

President of the Maldives, Dr Mohamed Muizzu, who is on a State Visit to Sri Lanka at the invitation of President Anura Kumara Dissanayake, planted a sapling this afternoon (04) at Viharamahadevi Park in Colombo to commemorate 60 years of diplomatic relations between Sri Lanka and the Maldives.

Upon arrival at the Viharamahadevi Park in Colombo, President Dr Mohamed Muizzu was warmly received by President Anura Kumara Dissanayake. Children lined both sides of the pathway holding the national flags of the two countries and paid tribute to the visiting Maldivian President.

Among those present at the occasion were Deputy Speaker Rizvi Salih, Minister of Foreign Affairs, Foreign Employment and Tourism, Vijitha Herath and the Mayor of Colombo, Vraie Cally Balthazaar, along with several other dignitaries.

[President’s Media Division (PMD)]

News

Sri Lanka and Maldives strengthen ties with productive bilateral talks

Published

18 mins ago

2026/05/4

Priyan

Following the bilateral meeting between President Anura Kumara Dissanayake and President Dr. Mohamed Muizzu of the Maldives, who is currently on a State visit to Sri Lanka, official-level bilateral discussions between the delegations of the two countries were held this morning (04) at the Presidential Secretariat.

The discussions commenced after the formal welcome ceremony accorded to President Dr. Mohamed Muizzu earlier this morning within the Presidential Secretariat premises.

Extending a warm welcome to the Maldivian President, President Anura Kumara Dissanayake expressed his appreciation for accepting the invitation to visit Sri Lanka.

President Dissanayake noted that President Muizzu’s visit, taking place as the two nations mark 61 years of diplomatic relations, reflects the strong partnership, mutual trust and longstanding friendship between Sri Lanka and the Maldives. The President further expressed confidence that the visit would mark a new phase in bilateral relations.

The two leaders engaged in extensive discussions on ways to further expand and diversify multifaceted cooperation, including economic, cultural and social ties, in a manner that delivers mutual benefits to the people of both countries.

Key areas of focus included tourism promotion, educational cooperation, youth and sports development, challenges faced by both nations in the fisheries sector within the Indian Ocean region, education and vocational training, as well as defence training and broader security cooperation.

Representing the Government of Sri Lanka were Minister of Foreign Affairs, Foreign Employment and Tourism, Vijitha Herath, Minister of Labour and Deputy Minister of Finance and Planning, Anil Jayantha Fernando, Minister of Science and Technology, Krishantha Abeysena; Deputy Speaker Rizvie Salih, Secretary to the President, Dr. Nandika Sanath Kumanayake, Secretary to the Ministry of Defence, Air Vice Marshal Sampath Thuyacontha (Retired), Additional Secretary to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (covering Europe, North America, East Asia and Oceania, Southeast Asia and Central Asia, South Asia, the Middle East and Legal Affairs) M. R. K. Lenagala, Sri Lanka’s High Commissioner to the Maldives, Mohamed Rizvi Hassan and Director (South Asia and SAARC) of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Foreign Employment and Tourism, Mahesha Jayawardena.

The Maldivian delegation included Minister of Foreign Affairs Iruthisham Adam, Minister of Economic Development and Trade, Mohamed Saeed, Minister of Fisheries, Agriculture and Marine Resources, Ahmed Shiyam, Minister of Homeland Security and Technology, Ali Ihusaan, Chief of Staff to the President, Abdulla Fayaz, Principal Secretary to the President on Foreign Relations, Mohamed Naseer; Chief Government Spokesperson, Mohamed Hussain Shareef, High Commissioner of the Maldives to Sri Lanka,Masood Imad; Minister of State for Foreign Affairs and Chief of Protocol , Mohamed Shahudy, Deputy Minister at the President’s Office, Mr Mohamed Hassaan and Minister Counsellor at the Maldives High Commission in Sri Lanka, Mr. Ismail Mamdhooh.

[President’s Media Division (PMD)]

News

Maldives and Sri Lanka exchange seven MOUs

Published

25 mins ago

2026/05/4

Priyan

Seven Memoranda of Understanding (MoUs), signed across several sectors between the Maldives and Sri Lanka, were formally exchanged this morning (04) at the Presidential Secretariat in the presence of President Anura Kumara Dissanayake and President Dr. Mohamed Muizzu of the Maldives.

Marking a new chapter in Maldives–Sri Lanka relations, the MoUs cover cooperation in the fields of health, sports, tourism, education and defence.

Accordingly:

1. MoU on Tourism Cooperation between the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka and the Republic of Maldives was exchanged by Maldives Minister of Foreign Affairs, Ms Iruthisham Adam and Sri Lanka’s Minister of Foreign Affairs, Foreign Employment and Tourism, Vijitha Herath.

2. MoU on Archiving Cooperation between the Department of National Archives of Sri Lanka and the National Archives of the Maldives was exchanged by Maldives Minister of Foreign Affairs, Ms Iruthisham Adam and Sri Lanka’s Minister of Foreign Affairs, Foreign Employment and Tourism, Vijitha Herath.

3. MoU on Training and Professional Development of Teachers and School Leaders between the Ministry of Education, Higher Education and Skills Development of the Maldives and the Ministry of Education, Higher Education and Vocational Education of Sri Lanka was exchanged by Maldives Minister of Foreign Affairs, Ms Iruthisham Adam and Sri Lanka’s Minister of Foreign Affairs, Foreign Employment and Tourism, Vijitha Herath.

4. MoU on Sports and Youth Development Cooperation between the Republic of Maldives and the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka was exchanged by Maldives Minister of Foreign Affairs, Ms Iruthisham Adam and Sri Lanka’s Minister of Youth Affairs and Sports, Sunil Kumara Gamage.

5. MoU on Defence Cooperation between the National Counter Terrorism Centre of the Maldives and the Ministry of Defence of Sri Lanka was exchanged by the Maldives High Commissioner to Sri Lanka, Masood Imad, and the Secretary to the Ministry of Defence, Air Vice Marshal Sampath Thuyacontha (Retired).

6. MoU between the Ministry of Defence and National Service of the Maldives and General Sir John Kotelawala Defence University of Sri Lanka was exchanged by the Maldives High Commissioner to Sri Lanka, Masood Imad and the Vice Chancellor of General Sir John Kotelawala Defence University, Rear Admiral Dammika Kumara.

7. MoU on Academic Cooperation between the University of Colombo of Sri Lanka and the Ministry of Health, Family and Welfare of the Maldives was exchanged by Maldives High Commissioner to Sri Lanka, Masood Imad and the Vice Chancellor of the University of Colombo, Professor Indika Mahesh Karunathilake.

The state visit of President Dr Mohamed Muizzu, undertaken at the invitation of President Anura Kumara Dissanayake, aims to further strengthen economic, cultural and social ties between the two countries, while enhancing their multifaceted partnership.

Cabinet Ministers, government officials and members of the Maldivian delegation, representing both Sri Lanka and the Maldives, were present at the occasion.

[President’s Media Division]