Three-way energy play: The India-Sri Lanka- UAE deal in Trincomalee

Trincomalee – a strategically-located port city on the east coast of Sri Lanka – has ambition to transform into an energy hub under a three-way deal signed between India, Sri Lanka and the United Arab Emirates. The agreement reportedly sets out a “framework for collaboration on a range of infrastructure and energy projects”, which includes the construction of a pipeline between India and Sri Lanka. According to the Emirates News Agency, the agreement also includes the “possible development” of a new refinery project.

Sri Lanka’s energy sector has become a political battlefield for external powers, primarily India and China. A proposed $3.7 billion oil refinery in Hambantota, located along Sri Lanka’s southern coast, recently announced by Chinese company Sinopec sparked concern in New Delhi, which has been particularly sensitive to Chinese presence in Sri Lanka’s northern and eastern provinces, given their proximity to India. When completed, the Hambantota facility will become Sinopec’s first fully controlled overseas refinery…| read more on The Interpreter