Sri Lankan government received 30 million Euros from France to reduce transmission losses of state owned CEB
The Finance Ministry of Sri Lanka has stated that the government would receive 30 million euros from France for a project to cut transmission losses at state owned Ceylon Electricity Board (CEB). The Ministry states that the project would reduce the country’s dependence on fossil fuels for electricity generation.
According to the Ministry, this is part of a US$ 260 million project – Green Power Development and Energy Efficiency Improvement Investment Programme – to improve energy savings by upgrading the island’s transmission infrastructure with a smart electricity grid and smart metering.
“Ceylon Electricity Board has an ambitious capital investment plan for the next ten years to maintain 100 percent electrification while improving supply quality and reliability,” a Finance Ministry statement has said.
“While ensuring a continuous supply of electricity, managing a strategic balance between indigenous energy resources and imported fossil fuels and coal is a major challenge faced by Sri Lanka’s power sector,” it has noted.
The statement has further stated that the French loan will go into implementing the second phase of the project.
The project has already received US$ 150 million from the Asian Development Bank (ADB) with French Agency for Development providing 22 million Euros for the first phase.
A credit facility agreement for the French loan was signed on Wednesday (17).
OSL take:
Authorities in Sri Lanka have adopted the policy of promoting renewable energy generation options as opposed to fossil fuel generated power. As a result, the Sri Lankan government has continuously promoted projects on wind and solar power generation in the country. The French financial assistance would also help reduce the dependency on fossil fuel generation in the country. Therefore, interested foreign business could explore investment opportunities in Sri Lanka’s power and energy sector.
| Article Code : | VBS/AT/20181019/Z_5 |