Sri Lanka Ports Authority allocates land for 20MW solar project
The Morning: The Sri Lanka Ports Authority has allocated 43 hectares of land in Kappalthure, Trincomalee, for a 20-megawatt solar power project. This initiative supports the national goal of increasing the country’s renewable energy to 70% by 2030. The land, leased for thirty years, is expected to generate an income of 1.75 million rupees per month.
The agreement was signed between the Sri Lanka Ports Authority (SLPA) and the ‘Sun Scape’ Project Company, a subsidiary of the Sri Lankan firm ‘Selex Renewables,’ 24 July at the Ministry of Ports, Shipping and Aviation Auditorium.
After signing this agreement, Minister Nimal Siripala de Silva stated that: The National Energy Policy of the current Government has accepted that renewable energy should be produced as a solution to the electricity crisis in Sri Lanka.
Accordingly, he said that by the year 2030, 70% of the energy required by Sri Lanka is expected to be obtained from renewable sources. The minister said that the process of selecting the lands owned by my ministry and the Port Authority, which cannot be used for other purposes and giving them to the investors, has started.
The Minister said that under the programme, 43 hectares of land in the Kappalthura area owned by the Trincomalee Port has been given to a Sri Lankan company on a thirty-year lease basis, which will generate an income of 1.75 million rupees per month to the Port Authority and will be able to make a special contribution to the national economy.
OSL take:
The expansion in Sri Lanka’s overall economy has created a demand in the power and energy sectors that has resulted in the creation of a host of new business/investment opportunities. The expanding power industry in the country however is mainly in the sector of renewable energy generation. With Sri Lanka’s policy of increasing the country’s renewable energy generation component to 70% of the total power mix, there are many business/investment opportunities in the renewable energy generation sector with both the state and private sector engaging in moving into renewable energy to meet their demand for power. The growth and profits recorded by local businesses engaged in the country’s renewable energy generation sector is indicative of the lucrative nature of Sri Lanka’s renewable energy. The interest shown by foreign businesses like Adani Green Energy to invest in Sri Lanka’s renewable energy generation sector is further indicative of the business potential in the sector. Foreign businesses/investors could therefore explore the expanding business/investment opportunities in Sri Lanka’s renewable energy generation sector. They could also look at forming collaborations with local businesses in the sector with the aim of further expansion.