The State-run Ceylon Electricity Board (CEB) has received 23 proposals to construct a 100 MW floating solar photovoltaic (PV) power plant on the Samanalawewa Reservoir in Udawalawe, The Sunday Morning learns.
Accordingly, the board is currently evaluating the proposals submitted by all 23 companies.
The Sunday Morning learns that the projects that can be added to the grid immediately are to be finalised, with priority given to them even if there are others that have already been committed to in the region.
As alleged by engineers attached to the CEB, the Samanalawewa floating solar project was not in any of the initial CEB Renewable Energy (RE) plans.
Therefore, if this project is commissioned, some of the projects that have already been commenced in the Hambantota area will have to be halted.
Highlighting the practice of avoiding such projects that suddenly come into play without proper planning, the engineer said: “Before 2022, all governments hid these facts and incurred massive losses due to unsolicited, unplanned deals which were later recovered from the Treasury. But now, due to the strict intervention of the International Monetary Fund (IMF), the real cost is passed on to the customers.”
As per the CEB’s report on the ‘Way Forward for the Integration of Renewable Energy Resources into the National Grid from 2023 to 2026 by Means of Appropriate Business Models’ prepared last year, provisional approvals have been issued only for two floating solar projects out of 92 RE projects.
The two projects are the Kiriibbanwewa floating solar power project in Embilipitiya and the Negombo floating solar power project in Katunayake.
As per the report, 1,795 MW of solar PV additions and 575 MW of wind power additions are proposed in the plan. In contrast, only 1,030 MW of thermal power plants are proposed, out of which 830 MW of additions have already been committed.
Another important aspect that can be observed is the introduction of battery energy storage to the system, initially 20 MW in 2024 with a gradual increase in capacity in subsequent years.
The introduction of battery storage enhances the flexibility of the electricity system to integrate variable renewable energy sources.
Last October, the Cabinet of Ministers approved a proposal submitted by the Ministry of Power and Energy to call for resolutions for the construction and execution of proposed solar power plants from those who were interested in following the national procurement guidelines applicable to the implementation of infrastructure facility projects.
The relevant approval was given following the realisation that the construction of floating solar power plants on the surface of reservoirs to generate solar power was a much more appropriate remedy for countries with limited land.
Thus, it was decided that approximately 100 hectares of the Samanalawewa Reservoir, which is under the purview of the CEB, would be used for the construction of a floating solar power plant.
Meanwhile, when contacted, CEB Spokesman Deputy General Manager Noel Priyantha said the Expressions of Interest (EOIs) had been called for a 100 MW floating solar project in Samanalawewa and that the transmission line capacity had been studied before the EOIs had been called.
CEB Chairman Nalinda Ilangakoon said priority would be given to the projects that came first, as the focus was to increase the RE capacity.