DNA MP alleges mineral sands scandal

By Ashwin Hemmathagama – Our Lobby Correspondent

The issue of ignoring the Government tender procedures and making use of a Cabinet paper to identify 65,000MT of mineral sands as ‘waste’, which was then offered to Gold Medal Consortium of China below the market price was exposed yesterday at Parliament by Democratic National Alliance MP Anura Dissanayake.

“These mineral sands, which contain high percentages of ilmenite, zircon, and rutile were held at Lanka Mineral Sands Ltd. at Pulmoddai for over a period of one year, skilfully avoiding tender procedures. The stock value exceeded US$ 25 million according to current estimates and there was potential to attract competitive price offers,” stated MP Dissanayake, who demanded to know the reasons to avoid tender procedures and reasons to sell below the market price from Minister of Public Resources and Enterprise Development Dayashritha Tissera.

“The BoI has given its recommendations to follow any method to get rid of the stock without incurring a loss to the company but I am waiting for the Cabinet decision, which will help me to decide following the tender procedures. Hi-Ti Non Mag Heavy Mineral was sold at US$ 30 before I took over the Ministry. But have managed to sell the same at US$ 394 having followed the tender procedures,” said Tissera in response.

Lanka Mineral Sands Ltd., a company fully owned by the Government of Sri Lanka, is the successor to Ceylon Mineral Sands Corporation, which was established in 1957 under the Industrial Corporation Act. The company conducts mining, processing and exporting of heavy mineral beach sands using the processing plant located in Pulmoddai in the Eastern coast.