The Cabinet of Ministers has approved the proposal presented by the  Minister of Energy Udaya Gammanpila to initiate a new feasibility study in order to determine the scope, technical, operational and financial feasibility of a project to enhance the existing capacity at Sapugaskanda Oil Refinery, the state information office said.

“The current capacity of the Ceylon Petroleum Corporation’s (CPC) refinery at Sapugaskanda is only 40,000 (bblspd) and the refinery meets only 25% of the local demand for refined petroleum products. The remaining 75% has to be imported, making a greater impact on foreign exchange."

"A feasibility study was conducted in 2010 for the renovation and expansion of the refinery to increase its capacity up to 100,000 (bblspd). Subsequent technological changes in the field have made it impossible to proceed on the results of the feasibility study,” it said.

Accordingly, the cabinet approved the proposal by the Minister of Energy to initiate a new feasibility study to determine the scope, technical, operational and financial feasibility of the project which is to be implemented with the focus on several alternative proposals to enhance the existing capacity.