Thursday Nov 20, 2025
Thursday Nov 20, 2025
Thursday, 20 November 2025 04:37 - - {{hitsCtrl.values.hits}}
The Cabinet of Ministers at their meeting on Monday approved the termination of the previously initiated procurement process and gave the green light for a new, comprehensive project to modernise the petroleum pipeline network linking the Colombo Port and the Kolonnawa refinery.
The decision follows repeated failures to identify a suitable investor under earlier proposals, despite the critical need to upgrade the ageing pipeline system.
“Currently, five decades-old pipelines transport imported petroleum products from the Colombo Port to the Kolonnawa refinery, but frequent leaks and structural weaknesses have raised serious concerns over safety, efficiency, and reliability,” Cabinet Spokesman and Minister Dr. Nalinda Jayatissa said at the weekly post-Cabinet meeting media briefing yesterday.
He said under the newly approved plan, the Government will implement “The Project to Lay Pipelines from Kolonnawa to Port” as an Engineering, Procurement, Construction and Carry On (EPCC) project.
The initiative includes construction of two new pipelines—18-inch and 14-inch in diameter from the Dolphin Oil Tanker Jetty at Colombo Port to the Kolonnawa refinery, equipped to support in-line machinery inspections; laying of a 12-inch undersea pipeline from the Dolphin Jetty to the Seram Gate and necessary upgrades and adjustments to both the Colombo Port terminal and the Kolonnawa refinery terminal to accommodate the new infrastructure.
Dr. Jayatissa said the project is expected to significantly enhance the reliability, safety and capacity of petroleum transportation within the Western Province, reducing operational risks while strengthening the country’s fuel supply chain.
The proposal to this effect was submitted by Power Minister Eng. Kumara Jayakody.
