The Ceylon Petroleum Corporation recorded a profit of Rs. 36.4 billion in 2025, its third consecutive year of positive results, the Central Bank has disclosed in its latest Annual Economic Review.
The figure is up from a Rs. 34.2 billion profit in 2024 and extends a turnaround for the state-owned oil importer that ran heavy losses during the 2022 foreign exchange crisis. The Central Bank attributed the sustained profitability to the continuation of the cost-reflective pricing mechanism, under which retail fuel prices are adjusted monthly to track import costs.
CPC’s outstanding foreign currency-denominated loans and import bills stood at $252 million at the end of 2025, according to the review.
Global crude oil prices fell during 2025. The average Brent crude price declined 14.5 percent year-on-year to $68.25 per barrel from $79.79 in 2024, on concerns over excess supply and subdued global growth. CPC’s average crude oil import price dropped 13.5 percent to $73.22 per barrel.
Domestic retail prices followed. By the end of 2025, Petrol 92 had been reduced by Rs. 15, Auto Diesel by Rs. 9 and Kerosene by Rs. 8 compared with the previous year. Petroleum sales volumes rose 7.4 percent on improved economic activity.
The benign cost environment reversed in early 2026. Middle East supply disruptions pushed Brent back above $100 per barrel in March, prompting significant upward price adjustments outside the regular monthly mechanism. CPC has since been operating under unusual supply and premium pressures linked to the Strait of Hormuz disruption. A 95,000MT crude tanker arrived on April 26, with the CPC saying fuel stocks are secured through June.
The profit contrasts with the broader picture of Sri Lanka’s state-owned enterprises, where reform pressure from the IMF programme has focused on reducing fiscal transfers.
