{"id":150479,"date":"2025-06-30T17:02:59","date_gmt":"2025-07-01T00:02:59","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/?p=150479"},"modified":"2025-06-30T17:02:59","modified_gmt":"2025-07-01T00:02:59","slug":"boi-chief-flags-us-3-7bn-sinopec-refinery-as-fragile","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/2025\/06\/30\/boi-chief-flags-us-3-7bn-sinopec-refinery-as-fragile\/","title":{"rendered":"BOI Chief flags US$ 3.7bn Sinopec refinery as \u201cFragile\u201d"},"content":{"rendered":"

By<\/strong><\/em> Nishel Fernando Courtesy The Daily Mirror<\/strong><\/em><\/span><\/h2>\n\n\n
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  • Highlights major investment risks in the project<\/strong><\/em><\/li>\n\n\n\n
  • BOI shifting its strategy to prioritise quality FDI\u201d that ensures long-term national benefits over merely chasing high investment figures\u00a0 \u00a0<\/strong><\/em><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n
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    Arjuna Herath<\/strong><\/em><\/td><\/tr><\/tbody><\/table><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

    The head of Sri Lanka\u2019s Board of Investment (BOI) has characterised the highly anticipated US$ 3.7 billion Sinopec oil refinery in Hambantota and Adani Group\u2019s renewable energy project as fragile investments,\u201d acknowledging the significant uncertainty surrounding their realisation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Joining a panel discussion at the recent CA Sri Lanka Tax Symposium in Colombo, BOI Chairman Arjuna Herath underscored the agency\u2019s commitment to attracting quality FDI\u201d rather than merely chasing investment figures, even as it works diligently to bring large-scale projects to fruition.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    There is a lot of pressure on us to try and achieve numbers of FDI,\u201d Herath said. But where is this FDI coming from? What are these FDIs? I think it\u2019s important to understand and work on quality FDIs.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    His remarks shed light on the precarious nature of high-value foreign investments in the current economic climate. We have seen FDI proposals that are on the table which are dwindling apart,\u201d he noted.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    The BOI chief directly referenced the Adani project, which has faced significant hurdles and saw the Indian conglomerate withdraw from a major wind power component earlier this year following government-led renegotiations. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

    I think you should not be too disturbed with those because if you really look at Adani, we all know what the Adani\u2019s investment was like,\u201d he remarked, implying the complexities and potential downsides of such ventures.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Despite the challenges, Herath assured that the BOI is actively engaged in negotiations to secure these investments. We are working very hard… but not at any cost, right? Because it might not be a quality investment at the end of the day. So, that\u2019s the context in which we operate,\u201d he emphasised, reiterating the primacy of national interest and long-term value over expediency. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Recent reports indicated that the Sinopec refinery project is currently stalled over disagreements regarding the extent of its access to the domestic market.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Herath\u2019s comments come as Sri Lanka navigates a delicate path of economic recovery heavily reliant on foreign direct investment. He acknowledged the bold\u201d and courageous\u201d steps taken by the government on economic reforms but cautioned that the resulting stability is still delicate. Reforms are very sensitive… And you get to reforms and start destabilising the stability that we have achieved now is a sensitivity that the government is dealing with,\u201d he said, advocating for a patient and carefully timed approach.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    In a challenging global environment for foreign investment, Herath candidly questioned Sri Lanka\u2019s current competitive edge. What do we offer? Why would a foreign investor come? Either we have market access, or we are close to supplies, or we have human resource skills and some excellent, unique properties, but all these things are not on our side,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    However, he highlighted Sri Lanka\u2019s strategic location and successes in niche markets like solid tyres, where the country holds a 35 percent global market share, as key advantages. The BOI is also focusing on fostering local investment and creating specialised economic zones for pharmaceuticals and textiles to drive growth.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    He emphasised cautious optimism with a clear strategic focus.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    I totally agree that we must go for quality more than quantity,\u201d he concluded.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

    By Nishel Fernando Courtesy The Daily Mirror Arjuna Herath The head of Sri Lanka\u2019s Board of Investment (BOI) has characterised the highly anticipated US$ 3.7 billion Sinopec oil refinery in Hambantota and Adani Group\u2019s renewable energy project as fragile investments,\u201d acknowledging the significant uncertainty surrounding their realisation. Joining a panel discussion at the recent CA […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[9,6],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-150479","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-business","category-politics"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/150479","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=150479"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/150479\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=150479"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=150479"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=150479"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}