‘CEB engineers should be ashamed of power cuts’

The Secretary, Energy User’s Association, Sanjeewa Dhammika seems to be confused or uninformed as regards his statement that engineers of the CEB should be ashamed of power cuts. He says, ‘They must implement the Long-Term Generation Plan. They too have scuttled the schemes that could have helped to overcome the current situation…’ These accusations should be squarely placed on the government and the Public Utilities Commission of Sri Lanka [PUCSL], which torpedoed the Long Term, Least Cost Generation Plan when at first PUCSL objected to the plan for having a coal plant included and it took a long period to settle the issue. Next, President Gotabaya Rajapaksa boastfully announced the cancellation of the additional coal plant at Norochcholai and set a target of 70% renewable sources of energy by 2030 without consulting the CEB as to its capabilities in reaching the target. When I say capabilities, I mean the administrative structure, the available resources and what is needed, etc. On top of that, the then Minister for Power and Energy, Ranjith Siyambalapitiya, interfered in awarding the tender by over four years for the construction of the Kerawalapitiya LNG power plant. If that project was approved in time, perhaps the CEB could have averted power cuts. Keep all that aside, the most important factor is the non-availability of US dollars to purchase fuel which caused the shut down of the Biyagama oil refinery and also the refusal of CPC to supply fuel to CEB due to non-payment, running into billions.

My sincere advice to the Secretary to Energy Users Ass. Jeewaka Dhammika is do not mislead consumers without knowing facts.

What I have stated above is what I have gathered from newspaper reports and could be refuted or confirmed by CEBEU or any other.

G. A. D. Sirimal
BORALESGAMUWA