Sri Lanka began two linked but distinct petroleum infrastructure projects at Muthurajawela on 2 October, according to the government’s project account, published the next day. One is a Ceylon Petroleum Corporation (CPC) Jet A-1 aviation-fuel system: five planned tanks with a stated capacity of 92,000 cubic metres and a 21-kilometre underground line to Bandaranaike International Airport at Katunayake. The other is a three-tank project owned by Ceylon Petroleum Storage Terminal Limited (CPSTL), adding a separate 40,000 cubic metres. The capacities belong to different entities and systems; they should not be described as one tank complex or as available stock today.

For CPC, the five Jet A-1 tanks are specified as two of 30,000 cubic metres each, two of 15,000 each and one of 2,000. The pipeline is reported at 10 inches in diameter and is intended to move aviation fuel from Muthurajawela directly to the airport instead of relying on road tankers. The project account gives a completion horizon of 30 months. Construction has commenced; the notice does not say that the line is commissioned, quantify current fuel throughput or provide a final cost or a daily operating target.

The separate CPSTL installation consists of two 15,000-cubic-metre tanks and one 10,000-cubic-metre tank at the Muthurajawela Terminal. Its contractual period is 18 months and the government account schedules completion for April 2028. This project expands terminal storage, whereas the CPC system combines aviation-fuel tanks and a dedicated airport connection. Although the government portal reports both initiatives at one event and in the same location, separate corporate ownership, capacities, intended fuels and schedules matter for project tracking and accountability.

At the commencement ceremony, President Anura Kumara Dissanayake said existing national fuel storage could cover around 23 to 25 days and described a policy aim of raising coverage to at least 45 days. Those are executive remarks about overall national storage, not a measured contribution from the unfinished tanks. His account also cited CPC accumulated debt of 840 billion rupees, CPC profit of 36 billion in the prior year and 28 billion so far in 2026, and CPSTL profit of 3.5 billion in the prior year. These figures are attributed statements, not audited accounts reviewed for this story.

The president also said the Treasury allocated 41 billion rupees for fuel subsidies for October to December 2026, after a separate 60-billion-rupee allocation for five months from April. He described the subsidy as the state covering part of an increase that would otherwise be passed to retail prices under a pricing formula. The remarks give fiscal context for the energy-sector projects, but the 41 billion is a budget allocation, not a confirmed final outturn. The source also does not trace any part of that subsidy to the construction budgets for either storage project.

The Jet A-1 pipeline is intended to reduce reliance on bowsers for airport fuel delivery, while storage can provide operating flexibility between cargo arrival and demand. Neither asset on its own guarantees uninterrupted supply: performance will depend on completion, safety controls, maintenance, fuel procurement, terminal operations and airport demand. The government release presents security of aviation fuel supply and lower transportation costs as project aims, but offers no quantified savings estimate, baseline, demand forecast or contingency assessment. These benefits therefore remain stated objectives rather than independently measured results.

The government’s broader remarks emphasized maintaining a state role in energy while improving efficiency and service. Dissanayake referred to the national system’s limited storage cover and to a target of at least 45 days, making the two projects part of a wider resilience discussion. Subsequent public updates could make the plans auditable by reporting construction progress, commissioning dates, final costs, usable capacity, actual stock days, pipeline volumes and incidents. Until then, the 2 October ceremony marks the start of two construction projects, not new fuel storage already available to consumers or aircraft.