Pricing Politics

Sept 14, 2008 (LBO) – Sri Lankan fuel users are suffering from the lack of a transparent price formula and severe politicization of pricing that had sometimes caused high inflation and balance of payments troubles in the island. Diesel users are mostly commercial enterprises and super rich sections of society including politicians who are allowed […]

Exploration Spend

Sep 11, 2008 (LBO) – Cairn India said its Sri Lanka unit had signed a deal with Sri Lanka’s investment promotion office to cover a 110 million US dollar oil exploration program. The company was given an off-shore exploration block in the north western Mannar Basin of the island. “The Mannar basin is a frontier […]

Bunker Deadline

Sept 08, 2008 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s Supreme Court has given the bunkering unit of John Keells Holdings (JKH) till September 12 to vacate a tank farm, and the company has been ordered to pay compensation to workers, lawyers said. LMS earlier sought and received time till September 10 to take away its oil stocks […]

Tactical Release

SINGAPORE, September 3, 2008 (AFP) – Oil prices fell in Asian trade Wednesday as the US government announced the release of oil from its strategic reserve to help with recovery efforts after Hurricane Gustav. New York’s main contract, light sweet crude for October delivery, dropped 34 cents to 109.37 dollars a barrel, while Brent North […]

Loss Assessment

Aug 22, 2008 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s John Keells Holdings (JKH) said a write-down at its bunkering unit could amount to 1.3 billion rupees after the firm lost a tank farm and a tax holiday, but the group was hopeful of capping losses at 704 million rupees.Following a Supreme Court decision that cancelled its tax […]

No Crisis?

PARIS, August 12, 2008 (AFP) – Oil demand is slowing sharply in advanced economies as people ease up on driving, supplies are rising and the market is set to cool well into next year, the IEA said on Tuesday. But it is too soon to declare the price boom over for now, the IEA warned, […]

Gas Dates

Aug 12, 2008 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s state-run Ceylon Petroleum Corporation’s (CPC) entry into liquid petroleum gas (LPG) retailing has been pushed to December due to procurement delays, an official said. CPC runs a 50,000 barrels a day refinery, and is the island’s largest petroleum distributor with more than two thirds of the petrol and […]

Bubble Deflating?

SINGAPORE, August 5, 2008 (AFP) – World oil prices fell in Asian trade Tuesday as fears about slowing US demand outweighed the increasing likelihood of heightened tensions over Iran’s controversial nuclear programme, dealers said. The storm was not seen as a threat to oil installations but operators in the crucial US petroleum industry hub said […]

Local Lube

July 18, 2008 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s diversified Laugfs Holdings has introduced lubricants to the local market, working capture 30 percent share in two years, top officials said. The lubricants were launched through the subsidiary of Laugfs Holdings, Laugfs Lubricants Limited. “As a fully Sri Lankan company, we are proud to enter a market which […]

Fuel Row

June 26, 2008 (LBO) – Indian Oil Corporation’s Sri Lanka unit has decided to drop its diesel retail price to match that of the dominant state-owned refiner after threats by government to take over its outlets. The fuel retailers sell diesel at a subsidised price and try to cover the losses through profits on petrol […]

Oil Row

June 19, 2008 (LBO) – Sri Lanka has ordered a local unit of Indian Oil Corporation to sell diesel on par with state-run Ceylon Petroleum Corporation or face sanctions, after the Indian firm raised diesel prices in response to a new tax. Lanka IOC raised the price of diesel by 20 rupees to 130 rupees […]

Arbitrage

June 10, 2008 (LBO) – Laugfs Auto Gas, a Sri Lankan gas distributor that started conversion of vehicles to run on auto gas, said that it was timely for owners to covert to gas because it is now almost 50 percent cheaper than petrol.“Liquid petroleum gas has always been cheaper than petrol and we believe […]

Page 34 of 72