On November 27, 2023, a special meeting was convened between the and Mr. Douglas Devananda, the Minister of Fisheries and representatives of the IOC Company to discuss the preparation of a program to supply fuel at concessionary prices to multi-day fishing vessels operating in Sri Lanka.
In response, IOC representatives stated that their company is able to provide fuel at a lower cost than what the Ceylon Petroleum Corporation currently charges for the supply of fuel for the filling stations located in Sri Lanka's fishery harbours.
Additionally, according to the delegation, since the Ceylon Petroleum Corporation owns the gas stations in the harbors there may be conflicts when it comes to supplying fuel to those stations by their company. Therefore, if the company is permitted to keep its own gas station in the fishery harbours, they will investigate the possibility of supplying Diesal for less than Rs. 351/=.
In this instance,the Minister of Fisheries, Mr. Douglas Devananda, stated that since both one-day and multi-day fishermen in the nation are having a lot of difficulties, they should also receive fuel assistance. According to him, the IOC's support is anticipated for this; hence measures would be taken to secure their support while making arrangements with the Ministry of Petroleum to avoid confrontation with the Ceylon Petroleum Corporation
This event was attended by the Secretary of the Ministry of Fisheries, Mrs. Indu Rathanayake, representatives of the IOC Company as well as the Director General of the Fisheries and Aquatic Resources Department Mr. Susantha Kahawatta, and others.
