Sri Lankan government to implement second stage of solar power project
The Cabinet of Ministers in Sri Lanka has approved the proposal to implement the second stage of the Suryabala Sangramaya Programme with the establishment of 90 small scale solar power plants in addition to the proposed 60 plants.
The Ceylon Electricity Board has reportedly affirmed that 90 projects of 1MW can be allowed under the second stage of the Suryabala Sangramaya Programme.
Power Minister Ranjith Siyambalapitiya is to call proposals in this regard with relevant amendments to the criteria followed in stage one, to improve the competition.
The Cabinet of Ministers had earlier approved to set up 60 small scale solar power plants of 1MW under the first stage of this programme and the proposals are currently being assessed.
Sri Lanka’s Cabinet has recently approved a proposal to procure 100MW of electricity from private power producers for a period of six months with the option of extending it by further six months.
The government of Sri Lanka has already received warnings from power sector experts on a looming power crisis in 2020 if the long term power generation plan is not implemented to meet the increasing demand.
The Public Utilities Commission of Sri Lanka (PUCSL) has said the failure to build the planned plants as per the timeline, unforeseen power procurement and change of power mix have resulted in the increase in the average unit cost of electricity.
Meanwhile, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) staff team has last week noted that more needs to be done in the area of state owned enterprises (SOE) reforms and upholding the reform momentum will be important for addressing fiscal and external imbalances.
The IMF earlier this month also pointed out that large financial obligations of SOEs need to develop specific reform strategies, and following through on fuel and electricity pricing reform.
OSL take:
The growing demand in Sri Lanka’s power sector would compel the authorities to promote solar power and other sustainable energy generation methods. Therefore, Sri Lanka’s power sector is a continuously growing investment sector for those seeking opportunities in the country.
| Article Code : | VBS/AT/23102017/Z_4 |