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Sathosa losses hit Rs 22b

212 outlets running at a loss
Rs 14b owed to suppliers by Dec 2025
More than eight suppliers blacklisted
25 new outlets, 100 refurbishments

The accumulated loss of Lanka Sathosa Ltd had reached Rs 22 billion by December 2025, with 212 of its 423 outlets currently operating at a loss, Trade, Commerce, Food Security and Cooperative Development Minister Wasantha Samarasinghe told Parliament yesterday (7).

Responding to a question raised by Opposition Parliamentarian Ravi Karunanayake, Samarasinghe said Sathosa had been facing serious financial difficulties, with Rs 14 billion owed to suppliers as of December last year, while the value of stocks held by the Company stood at only Rs 5.8 billion.

“As of December 2025, the accumulated loss incurred by Sathosa was Rs 22 billion,” he said.

Samarasinghe said there had been 452 Sathosa outlets at that time, of which 250 were operating at a loss.

“Therefore, we took several decisions to restructure the Institution. We have since had to close some outlets. Currently, there are 423 Sathosa outlets island-wide. Of them, 212 are running at losses. The main reason for this is that these outlets have been established in locations that are away from cities,” he said.

Commenting on plans to open new outlets in the coming months, Samarasinghe said the Government planned to open another 25 Sathosa shops this year (2026).

“Agreements are ready to be signed for 11 of them, while agreements for seven have already been signed. We have identified another 14 locations, and discussions relating to those are taking place,” he said.

He added that the Government also planned to refurbish 100 existing Sathosa outlets and give them a new appearance, with the tender process already underway.

Samarasinghe said the Company had recorded losses in every year from 2020 to 2025, with a capital loss of Rs 1.387 billion in 2020, Rs 840 million in 2021, Rs 35 million in 2022, Rs 695 million in 2023, Rs 776 million in 2024 and Rs 721 million in 2025.

He further said the Government was examining the manner in which Sathosa obtained goods from suppliers, noting that the Company often received goods only after suppliers had supplied other retaileRs

“We are having discussions with the supplieRs The suppliers provide goods to Sathosa after supplying everyone else and give us what is left. We have blacklisted more than eight suppliers during the past three months. We are also taking action regarding this,” he said.