COLOMBO, Mar 10 (NNN-XINHUA) – The fuel shortages in Sri Lanka will be over by Mar 15, Minister of Energy, Gamini Lokuge said, yesterday.
The current fuel shortages in the country were mainly due to the scarcity of U.S. dollars. The finance minister guaranteed that funds will be made available, to import fuel, and said, several ships carrying oil have reached the Colombo Port or are on their way.
Although the central bank earlier urged the government to increase the price of fuel, to reflect the market prices, the government is not planning to do so, considering the inconvenience to the people, said the minister.
He said, the energy ministry is also planning to run the country’s only oil refinery at full capacity, and has conducted discussions with several companies to purchase crude oil.
Meanwhile, the Ministry of Public Services, Provincial Councils and Local Government, issued a circular, imposing restrictions on the use of electricity and fuel by public institutions.
According to the circular, government institutions must switch off air conditioners from 2:30 p.m. to 4:30 p.m. local time, and when operational, the air conditioning units must keep the temperature at 26 degrees centigrade or more.
Government institutions are also encouraged to open windows in buildings, during the morning and minimise the use of elevators.
“The number of vehicles at public institutions is more than 75,000. If a litre of fuel from each vehicle is saved each day, a total of 75,000 litres of fuel can be saved. Around 27 million litres of fuel can be saved annually through this,” the circular said.– NNN-XINHUA
