More than 55,000 metric tonnes of coal that should have been rejected at the load port had already been discharged from the vessel MV JOSCO YONGZHOU at the Norochcholai Lakvijaya Power Plant by Tuesday (June 2), the Island reported, citing the Free Lawyers Organisation (FLO).
The vessel, carrying a total cargo of 59,766 metric tonnes, arrived at the Puttalam anchorage on May 28. The Island reported that authorities inspected the cargo at around 3.30 p.m. and granted approval for unloading within about 30 minutes. Discharge then began and has continued despite a string of warnings from civil society groups.
According to the FLO, the Load Port Report issued by Bureau Veritas Solutions South Africa (Pvt) Ltd on April 30, 2026 classified the consignment as one that should have been wholly rejected under the Lanka Coal Company tender. Section 5.2 of the tender — titled “LCC Reject Values for Coal” — caps permissible ash content at 16 per cent. The Bureau Veritas test returned an ash level of 16.8 per cent.
“The coal does not qualify for purchase under the tender conditions. There is no legal basis for the Lanka Coal Company or the Government of Sri Lanka to accept or pay for this shipment,” the organisation said.
The Island identified the supplier as Taranjot Resource (Pvt) Ltd. The FLO described the case as the most serious coal procurement controversy in recent years and said it was the first time a shipment flagged at the loading port itself as falling within the rejectable band had nevertheless been cleared for discharge in Sri Lanka.
Attorneys-at-law Athula de Silva and Piyal Darshana Guruge warned that any decision to release payment for the cargo could expose officials to liability under the Anti-Corruption Act No. 9 of 2023. Authorising payment for a shipment that allegedly fails mandatory quality requirements, they argued, could amount to causing a loss to the state and constitute a breach of procurement procedures, financial regulations and administrative rules.
The lawyers questioned how a shipment identified in an internationally recognised inspection report as unsuitable was allowed to proceed through approval and be almost entirely unloaded before any formal investigation. The FLO called for an immediate independent inquiry by the Auditor General, the Commission to Investigate Allegations of Bribery or Corruption, the Lanka Coal Company itself and relevant technical authorities.
Tuesday’s discharge total brings the shipment to closure on the same vessel that, on May 26, FLO first flagged with the 16.8 per cent ash reading from the Richards Bay load-port manifest. Energy Minister Anura Karunathilaka subsequently said the government was weighing legal and technical options on the cargo, arguing that any outright rejection risked grid reliability with the south-west monsoon set to halt coal-unloading from mid-June. Taranjot Resources is also one of seven shortlisted bidders in the 2026-2027 Lakvijaya tender, and previously secured the Lakvijaya emergency supply contract over which the FSP has pending court challenges.
