Moves afoot to launch waste to energy pilot project

By Ifham Nizam

Plans are afoot to launch a pilot project to establish an electricity distribution network in Galle for the first time using underground cables, Power and Energy Minister Dullas Alhapperuma said.

Electricity is a basic infrastructure, a human right and an essential service to the people. At present, 99.6 percent of the people in Galle district have been provided with power and there are only 2,730 families without electricity connections, he told The Sunday Island.

“We are ready to provide electricity to them before the end of 2022,” he stressed.

He said President’s Prosperity Vision for building a fossil fuel free sector has given direction to the power sector towards renewable energy.

The expansion of renewable energy in the Galle district has still not been successful. Only 919 houses in the district have solar panels installed on their roofs. “Therefore, within this year, we have made arrangements to convert homes and offices in the district into solar power plants and to expand the new project launched to generate electricity using transformers.”

He also said plans are afoot to launch a pilot project to generate electricity using garbage, which a big problem in Sri Lanka.