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Trying to increase grid capacity for renewable energy generation : CEB 

07 Sep 2020

  • Unable to add more renewable energy without grid capacity 
  • Govt. targeting to increase renewable energy 
By Maheesha Mudugmuwa Efforts are being taken by the Ceylon Electricity Board (CEB) to expand the existing grid capacity to allocate more space for renewable energy, according to the Ministry of Power. Ministry of Power Director (Development) Sulakshana Jayawardena told The Morning that the grid capacity can be expanded by installing more transformers and at present the CEB is exploring the possibilities for augmentation. “Renewable energy is a variable energy source and to maintain the stability, reliability, quality, and supply of the system, there are certain technical requirements. You can’t add more and more renewable (energy) to the grid substation if there is no capacity. When it comes to the grid substations, there are transformers, and these transformers have a technical capacity,” he explained. “We have already augmented a dedicated grid substation only for (the) absorption of renewable energy and there are other ongoing measures to enhance grid capacity,” he said, pointing out that other infrastructure, such as transmission lines and accessories, need to be upgraded in parallel to upgrading the existing system. “The Government is targeting to get more renewable (energy) to the system. Grid expansion should be done in order to provide facilities for more renewable energy to be added to the national grid,” he added. According to statistics, by the end of 2018, the Sri Lankan power system had a total installed capacity of approximately 4,048 MW with a total dispatchable capacity of 3,464 MW. The maximum demand recorded in 2018 was 2,616 MW and total net generation was 15,305 GWh. Throughout recent years, the country’s power system has operated maintaining around a 20% share of renewable energy. The renewable energy share is expected to be increased up to 38% by 2025 and 65% by 2030.


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