Category: Power

Apr 24, 2013 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s state-run Ceylon Electricity Board has been given guidelines to negotiate much lower rates if expired contracts of power plants are extended, a top official said.“The CEB had been given strict guidelines to negotiate much lower charges if they are needed,” power ministry secretary M M C Ferdinando said […]

Apr 24, 2013 (LBO) – A battle has sparked between Sri Lanka’s current and ex-power ministers following a hike in tariffs which has already drawn fire from opposition parties. Former power minister Champika Ranawaka denied he initiated a tariff hike after media reported that current minister Pavithra Wanniarachchi as saying she only completed the task […]

Apr 23, 2013 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s state-run Ceylon Electricity Board will re-negotiate the heat rate of a controversial 270 MegaWatt power plant, officials said, which was brought in to the grid without competitive bidding.Power ministry secretary M M C Ferdinando, responding to questions at a meeting of media heads with President Mahinda Rajapaksa, Monday […]

Apr 23, 2013 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s Ceylon Electricity Board’s recent release of water from its Upper Kotmale reservoir was due to a maintenance requirement and was not intended to benefit a private thermal plants, a top official said.The water from Upper Kotmale was released into the Kotmale Reservoir which is lower in the cascade […]

Apr 22, 2013 (LBO) – A disputed power purchase agreement (PPA) for a joint venture coal plant with India’s National Thermal Power Corporation, has been re-negotiated on fairer terms paving the way to the plant to go ahead, officials said. Industry analysts and the public at a recent public hearing has warned the CEB not […]

Apr 22, 2013 (LBO) – A hike in power tariffs has had a minimal impact on low users, and a fuel surcharge will be phased out from early next year as two more coal plants come on stream, officials said.Power minister Pavithra Wanniarachchi said 1.1 million households that used up to 30 units of electricity […]

Apr 20, 2013 (LBO) – Ministers in Sri Lanka paid only 2,000 rupees for power a month regardless of the volume of use, former foreign minister Mangala Samaraweera told reporters in a shock revelation.“I am aware of the situation, as I myself paid only 2000 rupees when I was a minister,” he was quoted as […]

Apr 19, 2013 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s Ceylon Chamber of Commerce said the latest hike will see power costs going up by 20 to 30 percent and the state power utility to should follow the directions of the regulator to increase its transparency.The Chamber said the Public Utilities Commission had not made adjustments to tariffs […]

Apr 18, 2013 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s main opposition United National Party has slammed a power tariff hike for very low users and the questioned the independence of the regulator, after a proposal of the state power monopoly was approved almost unchanged.But the regulator had earlier dis-allowed 40 billion rupees from proposed expenses of state-run […]

Apr 18, 2013 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s power regulator has set eight conditions for cost transparency at state-run Ceylon Electricity Board, which it said came from consumer suggestions at a public hearing.Other analysts have also questioned the efficiency of several thermal plants and called for PPA’s to be made public. CEB has to initiate power […]

Apr 17, 2013 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s power regulator has approved a tariff request by state-run Ceylon Electricity Board denying a request to reduce tariffs of large domestic users, after earlier cutting of 40 billion rupees in estimated costs.High user domestic tariffs at around 44 rupees a unit with the fuel surcharge are more than […]

Apr 16, 2013 (LBO) – Sri Lanka should stop raising power tariffs suddenly by large percentages after driving the economy to crisis, but use an already established methodology to revise prices in an orderly way, consumers said.“These ad hoc tariff increases are bad of the industry,” Srilal Miththapala, representing hotels at a public hearing on […]