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CPC requests SriLankan to pay $ 30 m every 20 days

16 Jan 2022

  • Says it cannot import jet fuel if payments are not settled
National Carrier SriLankan Airlines has been directed to pay $ 30 million to the Ceylon Petroleum Corporation (CPC) on the 20th of every month to avoid delays or hindrances in procuring jet fuel for its operations.  Speaking to The Sunday Morning Business, a senior official from the CPC who wished to remain anonymous stated that CPC imports jet fuel cargo once every 20 days, and that these consignments cost them $ 30 million. Now, the CPC wants SriLankan to pay this $ 30 million prior to the unloading of cargo so that it does not accumulate jet fuel credit bills.  Commenting on the outcome if SriLankan Airlines failed to make the payment, the official said: “Then we can’t keep ordering fuel as the payment has to be settled to the CPC on time. Sri Lanka is supposed to settle payments in advance to get these cargoes.” The official further noted that this directive was finalised as the settlements made by SriLankan Airlines so far were insufficient for the CPC to procure jet fuel.   Meanwhile, addressing a media conference in December 2021, CPC Chairman Sumith Wijesinghe revealed that a decision had been finalised by the CPC that the National Carrier had to settle its payments in US Dollars (USD) through the State banks for its jet fuel.  SriLankan Airlines Manager – Media Relations and Public Relations Deepal Perera stated that the airline had started settling its payments to the CPC in USD from the day the request was made. “We are an international airline and most of the revenue generated is in USD. Thus, from the time they have wanted us to pay, we have been paying in dollars. Today we are one of the biggest foreign exchange earners in the country,” he said.  However, when inquiries were made on statistics relating to the payments the carrier is said to be settling, Perera refused to divulge said information. With reference to data released in 2020, SriLankan Airlines’ monthly CPC bill alone was around $ 14 million, with only $ 6 million of it having been paid monthly before the local Covid-19 outbreak. Attempts to collect more recent data proved futile.  Issuing a statement last week, SriLankan Airlines reported a company profit of $ 9.25 million and a group profit of $ 10.66 million for December 2021 – the first profitable month for the airline since the onset of the pandemic in early 2020.  Revenues were up by almost 200% compared with the same period last year and have reached over 80% of pre-pandemic levels. Further, the airline reported a profit of $ 11.43 million for December 2021 in terms of air transportation level, which is the highest recorded profit from air transportation in over 20 years. “The sacrifices made by all our staff members have paved the way for a positive start for the new year. During the past two years, we implemented multifaceted initiatives to reduce operational costs, for which each and every employee of the SriLankan family contributed, and we are reaping the benefits of our efforts today. The future, however, remains extremely challenging with the spread of the new variant of the virus and we will continue to monitor the situation closely and take necessary action to ensure that the momentum achieved in December continues,” said SriLankan Airlines Chairman Ashok Pathirage.  SriLankan operated close to 800 flights during the month and carried a total of 228,203 passengers – in excess of 13 times the number of passengers carried in December 2020. Moreover, SriLankan uplifted a total of 7,877 metric tonnes of cargo, which is a 147% increase from December 2020.  (YD)  


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