Lanka IOC and Sinopec have raised the price of a litre of Octane 95 petrol by Rs 20, taking it to Rs 515 with effect from midnight on Wednesday.
Both companies announced the revision on 4 November, Hiru News reported late on Wednesday night. The Island reported the same increase and supplied the starting point: the grade moves from Rs 495 to Rs 515.
That matches this desk’s record. Lanka IOC last set Octane 95 at Rs 495 on 25 October, so the grade has risen Rs 20 in ten days.
Only one grade, only two retailers
Neither filing reports a change to any other product. Octane 92 petrol, auto diesel and super diesel are not mentioned, and no revision by the state-owned Ceylon Petroleum Corporation has been announced alongside this one.
That ordering matters. Private retailers in Sri Lanka have at times moved ahead of CPC and at times followed it, and on this occasion the two private operators have moved without a reported state-sector counterpart. Whether CPC follows is not addressed by either report.
Context: a dispute over margins is already running
The increase lands the same day the private retailers’ position on pricing was put to Parliament by Patali Champika Ranawaka, who accused CPC of profiteering while denying private operators a level playing field.
Not reported
Neither outlet gives a reason for the increase, and neither cites global crude movements, the exchange rate or the monthly pricing formula. Neither states whether the two companies revised independently or in step, despite announcing identical prices on the same night. Neither reports the volume of the market the two retailers serve, and neither carries comment from CPC or the Ministry of Energy.
