Sri Lanka guarantees Rs50bn in new credit to state entities in 2009

Mar 04, 2010 (LBO) - Sri Lanka has guaranteed 52 billion rupees in credit to state entities in 2009 from state-run banks with loss making energy utilities and airlines getting tens of billions in new loan facilities, a finance ministry report said.



State-run Ceylon Petroleum Corporation (CPC) has been supported with a 25 billion rupee guarantee to borrow from state-run Bank of Ceylon and Ceylon Electricity Board has been backed with an 8.0 billion rupee guarantee to borrow from People's Bank.

A fuel pipeline project by Ceylon Petroleum Storage Terminal, a common user facility, has been given guarantees of 4.

6 billion rupees to borrow from Peoples' Bank. A further 437 million in guarantees had been given to CPC for the same project.

Borrowings of Mihin Lanka, a controversial loss-making state airline, from the Bank of Ceylon had been covered by a 1,552 million rupee guarantee in December.

Sri Lankan Airlines, which was earlier managed by Emirates airlines has been issued a 'letter of comfort' to cover 1,152 million rupees in loans from the Bank of Ceylon in December.

State Trading General Company, a trading firm, has been helped by a 2.

5 billion guarantee for c