Oil drilling must start soon, says Fowzie

By P.A. Anthony Mark our Mannar correspondent

The only solution to reduce losses and stabilize prices of the Ceylon Petroleum Corporation is to commence the proposed oil-drilling project very soon, Petroleum Resources Minister A.H.M. Fowzie said.

“A survey conducted by Asian Development Bank technical research experts some years ago, have confirmed the presence of oil in eight places in the Gulf of Mannar and two of them have already been entrusted for drilling,” he said.

The Government has already entrusted the oil-drilling project to Indian and Chinese firms, he said adding that drilling on the six other oil deposits will be entrusted to reputed international firms within the next three months.

“If utilized fully, the eight oil deposits will produce 100,000 barrels of crude oil per day and the country could utilize half of it for domestic consumption,” the minister said.

For a month, our country needs 35 million litres of petrol and 137 million litres of diesel and kerosene oil, he said.