Category: Power

Nov 10, 2010 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s Hemas Holdings plans to build a hydro power plant in an African country, making use of existing company expertise, as part of an overseas diversification, its chief executive Husein Esufally said. The group’s Hemas Power subsidiary has two mini hydro plants operating right now with a third under […]

Nov 08, 2010 (LBO) – Higher electricity generation from both thermal and hydro power plants helped Sri Lanka’s Hemas Power make a net profit of 124 million rupees in the September 2010 quarter, a stock exchange filing said. The company had made a loss of 3. 5 million rupees in the same period a year […]

Nov 07, 2010 (LBO) – Sri Lanka is building more mini-hydro and wind power plants but needs more technology transfer to ensure better use of renewable energy, officials said. Energy produced from wind and solar plants varies depending on the availability of wind and sunlight and hence cannot be used as base load power. “There […]

Nov 02, 2010 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s Hydro Power Free Lanka Ltd said its 350 million rupee initial public offering has been oversubscribed 57 times with applications worth 19. 97 billion rupees flooding in. Hydro Power Free Lankan offered 32 percent of the firm of 35 million shares. The issue’s managers, Taprobane Holdings Ltd, said […]

Oct 25, 2010 LBO) – A planned testing of Sri lanka’s first coal-fired power plant will go ahead as scheduled on November 17, despite a fire which broke out over the weekend, power minister Champika Ranawaka said. Potential fire damage to Norochcholai plant on the west coast is still being assessed by the government analyst, […]

Oct 24, 2010 (LBO) – A fire has broken out at Sri Lanka’s first coal burning power plant in Sri Lanka Western coastal town of Norochcholai which was scheduled to start test operations next month, but it is being brought under control, a top official said. Chairman of state-run Ceylon Electricity Board, Vidya Amarapala said […]

Oct 20, 2010 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s state-run Ceylon Electricity Board has awarded a 35MegaWatt 82 million US dollar hydro power plant deal to China, power minister Champika Ranawaka said. Another smaller diversion weir 48 meters long and 19 meters high will be built across the Kehelgamu Oya and water brought through an 850 meter […]

Oct 20, 2010 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s state-run Ceylon Electricity Board may lose only half the originally expected 40 billion rupees in 2010 with the utility already covering operation costs in June, July and August, power minister Champika Ranawaka said. A 155 billion rupee loan taken from China Export Import Bank to build a 900 […]

Sept 29, 2010 (LBO) – Hydro Power Free Lanka, a mini-hydro power firm which has a generating capacity of 3.2 MegaWatts is selling 35 million shares to raise 350 million rupees to build more plants, the Colombo Stock Exchange and officials said. The firm operates two 1.6 MegaWatt plant in the Gampola area in Sri […]

Sept 28, 2010 (LBO) – Sri Lanka has begun a study to build a nuclear power plant to meet growing electricity demand and is in talks with Russia and other countries to get technology and training, an official said. “We’re considering nuclear power as an option in our long-term generation plan for 2025,” power and […]

Sept 06, 2010 (LBO) – Tilak Siyambalapitiya, an expert of power has responded to a recent Lanka Business Online story on a solar power project by a financial sector firm, explaining the economics of solar power. The response is reproduced below. I write with reference to your recent news item on Solar Supplement. I am […]

Sept 03, 2010 (LBO) – A starting date for a joint venture India Sri Lanka coal power station has still not been set, but it will be last coal plant that the government will approve, Sri Lanka’s energy minister Patali Ranawaka said. “It is in the feasibility study stage,” he said. Minister Ranawaka said there […]