The Electricity Consumers’ Association (ECA) claimed that numerous irregularities are likely to occur in the proposed emergency power purchase process and that they intend to inform the relevant parties, including the Public Utilities Commission of Sri Lanka (PUCSL) and the Opposition political parties, regarding such.
On Tuesday (15), Power and Energy Minister Kanchana Wijesekera said that of the four private plants available for emergency power purchasing in the country, the Cabinet of Ministers had accepted and approved the proposals put forward by ACE Embilipitiya and ACE Matara.
Speaking to The Daily Morning, ECA General Secretary Sanjeewa Dhammika claimed that the Ceylon Electricity Board (CEB) is to pay Rs. 60-100 million as a capacity fee for the purchase of emergency power from the ACE power plant in Embilipitiya. Even though it will not be necessary to make emergency power purchases due to rain in the future, he claimed that the CEB would have to pay the relevant capacity charge during the relevant contractual period, on a monthly basis. “This is only for one power plant. The CEB has to spend millions of rupees for the capacity charge paid to other power plants. This is in addition to the payment to be made for the electricity units.”
He further alleged that many other forms of irregularities are likely to take place during the related process and that it would be the consumers who would have to bear the cost of such in the future. “The irregularities in this process are not something new. Whenever someone hears of emergency power purchases, they are reminded of irregularities first. Therefore, we wish to meet the PUCSL Chairman and Director General, the Power and Energy Ministry Secretary, the Auditor General, and Opposition Leader Sajith Premadasa and other Opposition politicians,” added Dhammika.
Speaking at a media briefing on Tuesday, Wijesekera said that electricity would be procured from private power plants on the basis that the Government would provide fuel. He also refuted allegations of possible irregularities in the process and added that it would be carried out in a transparent manner. “It is due to weather conditions and the release of water from the Samanalawewa Reservoir to the Udawalawe Reservoir that we have to make emergency power purchases. If someone says the Government always attempts to make such, it is the politicians who kept on saying that water should be released for farmlands that should be held responsible."