COLOMBO, June 19 (Xinhua) -- Sri Lanka's Minister of Power and Energy Kanchana Wijesekera told reporters on Sunday that they have reached out to several Russian crude oil suppliers for the country's energy solution, according to the Russian embassy in Colombo.
Wijesekera said that they are trying to obtain Russian crude oil on credit to keep the country's only oil refinery running.
The minister said that Sri Lanka's oil bill has risen to 550 million U.S. dollars a month by June 2022.
He added that Sri Lanka now owes oil firms 730 million dollars for oil imported on credit, and these companies will now only supply fuel after upfront payments or deposits.
Sri Lanka has suffered crippling fuel shortages since February as a foreign exchange crisis worsened in the South Asian country.
