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CEB looks to purchase power from private plants

31 Jan 2022

 
  • Cabinet to evaluate Lokuge’s proposal today
  • CEB already considering private purchases
  A cabinet proposal for the Ceylon Electricity Board (CEB) to purchase power, in the short term, from private power plants will be discussed at the Cabinet’s meeting today (31), while the CEB has already begun considering and evaluating private power purchasing plans. Power Minister Gamini Lokuge told the media on Saturday (29) that he has submitted the cabinet proposal for private power purchases considering the looming electricity crisis in the country. Meanwhile, well-placed sources at the CEB told us yesterday (30) that CEB Chairman M.M.C. Ferdinando has directed the CEB to evaluate private power purchasing plans. However, last week, Lokuge alleged that “certain parties” wanted the Government to sign private power purchasing agreements, in order to acquire power at a higher cost. “Some people want private power purchasing agreements to be signed, which is why some engineers are accusing the Government of not taking alternate paths to avoid a power crisis. But we have taken our own measures to avert the power crisis, by depending on our existing power plants. We will have to consider these kinds of agreements in April anyway, when the drought worsens. We have not forgotten that, but we are trying to do this at the lowest cost possible,” Lokuge said at a media briefing. He said that in the past, the CEB had received electricity from private power plants through such agreements, which had been terminated in April and June 2021. “We wanted to extend them only temporarily, for maybe three or six months, but the companies did not agree to do so.” Furthermore, Lokuge said that the cost incurred by the CEB reduced significantly this January when compared to January 2021. “We were able to reduce this cost because last year we mostly relied on coal power and hydropower to generate electricity. These days we are focusing on running our fuel power plants.” In 2020, the Cabinet of Ministers did not grant approval to extend the power purchasing agreements with three private power companies – ACE Power Matara, ACE Power Embilipitiya, and Asia Power Sapugaskanda – which together supplied a total of 170 MW to the national grid.


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