Sri Lanka to issue new licences to import lubricant, bitumen

By Sandun A. Jayasekera
Through the country’s Petroleum Resources Development Ministry, Sri Lanka has decided to issue more licences to parties interested in importing lubricants, despite the existing players are grumbling about an already overcrowded market. 

Along with the move, the government has also increased the licence fee from Rs.1 million to Rs.2 million and the biannual fixed registration fee from Rs.5 million to Rs.6 million with immediate effect.  
The registration and licence fees were last amended in 2006.

The quality of the lubricants imported and locally blended will be ensured by the Sri Lanka Standards Institute (SLS) and the Public Utilities Commission of Sri Lanka (PUCSL) will act as the industry regulator, the government said. 

The Consumer Affairs Authority will be asked to enact legislation to enforce standards.  
At present, 13 companies, including Ceylon Petroleum Corporation and Lanka Indian Oil Company, are engaged in the lubricant industry. 
Chevron Lubricants Lanka PLC, the local unit of the US-based multinational, is said to be controlling almost half of the country’s lubricant market.  Meanwhile, the Cabinet of Ministers has also given the green light to liberalise the importation of bitumen, a chemical widely used in road construction.

In this process too, the PUCSL will be designated as the regulator and the SLS is expected to set the national standards for bitumen in line with the international standards.
The Industrial Technology Institute and Road Development Authority will be instructed to upgrade and accredit their laboratory facilities to issue quality certificates.

The Petroleum Resources Development Ministry will introduce an annual fixed registration fee of Rs.2 million payable biannually and an appropriate variable registration fee based on the bitumen sales value, with a maximum total registration fee limit on the bitumen trade licence holders.
The government believes the liberalisation of the bitumen trade will enable Sri Lanka to become the regional supplier.