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Grievances made by workers at JCT Ltd. Oil Bank fuel oil storage facility relating to compensation and salaries are said to be affecting bunkering operations in Colombo, The Sunday Times reports.

Employees at the storage complex are said to have informed Sri Lanka's Commissioner-General of Labour that they are yet to receive compensation and salaries and their letters of appointments are not yet in order.

Workers are also reported to be refusing to sign their appointment letters because the authorities have not yet informed them of their service conditions.

As a result, staff at JCT Ltd. Oil Bank have told the Commissioner-General that productivity at the facility has been greatly affected by the frustration of workers. A number of bunkering orders had also been cancelled due to the failure of bunker licence holders to implement streamline procedures, trade unions said.

JCT Ltd. Oil Bank, which took over the tank farm previously occupied by Lanka Marine Services (LMS) in September following a court ruling, is said to have entered into agreements with a number bunker licence holders for shared use of the storage facility.

The tank farm received its first cargo of 6,500 tonnes of bunker fuel for storage at the end of Sepember.

According to officials at the Sri Lanka Ports Authority (SLPA), approximately 30,000 tonnes of marine fuel can be stored at the storage complex at any one time. This amount would therefore cater for roughly two months of bunker demand in Colombo, which is currently at 15,000 tonnes per month.

Local media sources claim that only 2,500 tonnes of bunker fuel is currently being stored at the tank farm, which is approximately 8.3 percent of total storage capacity.