A crisis has arisen in the country due to a sudden increase in demand for gas, President Anura Kumara Dissanayake has stated.

Speaking in Parliament today (03) while addressing concerns regarding the gas shortage, the President said that there is a storage capacity issue, and necessary measures are currently being prepared to address it.

President Dissanayake emphasized that Sri Lanka can store gas only for about one week at maximum.

The President also mentioned that the likelihood of a future crisis in gas and fuel is very low. He added that a ship carrying 100,000 new gas cylinders is scheduled to arrive in the country by March 12.

President Dissanayake said, “We are facing a special issue, which is the gas problem. Our total storage capacity is 8,000 metric tons. Our daily gas requirement for the Litro company is between 1,000 and 1,200 metric tons. At best, we can store gas for only about a week. We cannot wait until stocks run out before importing. Every two days, we bring in about 8,000 metric tons to the port. That is the situation. This needs to change. Even now, a ship is being held in the Maldives, and from that ship, smaller vessels are bringing 8,000 metric tons at a time. These are the realities. This system must change.”

“Litro Gas has ordered 100,000 new cylinders, and the ship will arrive on the 12th. There was also a shortage of cylinders. Those using yellow cylinders needed to switch to blue ones, but there were not enough tanks. This is how the system works. People keep shouting about a gas shortage, but we must understand the crisis.

“If we have storage for only 8,000 metric tons and can supply 1,000–1,200 metric tons daily to Litro, but demand suddenly rises to 1,800 metric tons per day, then supplies would last for less than five days, and a crisis could arise. However, solutions can be found for such a situation.”