Power conundrum

Thursday 29th December, 2022

Minister of Power and Energy Kanchana Wijesekera has, true to form, warned that unless electricity tariffs are increased again, there will be extended power cuts. He is trying to scare the public into paying more for power without protesting. But former Minister of Power Champika Ranawaka has rubbished the government’s claim that the Ceylon Electricity Board (CEB) is incurring losses, and questioned the validity of the load forecasting (LF) for 2023, upon which the CEB’s decision to jack up power tariff again is based. Ranawaka is reported to have said the country’s daily electricity consumption is 37 Gigawatt hours, and the CEB’s claim that it will increase to 48 Gigawatt hours next year is far-fetched, and the CEB has not factored in a decrease in the demand for power.

An electrical engineer, Ranawaka is au fait with what is happening in the power sector, and his aforesaid assertion could be considered credible although it is not devoid of politics. When an economy contracts and power tariffs soar, the demand for electricity usually drops. The Public Utilities Commission of Sri Lanka has confirmed a decrease in electricity consumption during the past few months. So, it defies comprehension why the CEB says there will be a huge increase in the demand for power next year. Has the CEB carried out a scientific study on the country’s future power needs? Or, has it just plucked the LF figures out of the air to advance a hidden agenda? It may be recalled that John Perkins has revealed in his book, Confessions of an Economic Hit man, how LF is manipulated to make developing countries borrow and invest in power-related development projects. The CEB and Minister Wijesekera, therefore, owe an explanation to the public as regards the LF in question, and the tariff increases based thereon.

It is believed that by jacking up power tariffs and causing the country to purchase electricity at higher prices, the SLPP-UNP administration is trying to help private power producers including the Adani Group, which has invested in wind power projects here, maximise their profits. The government also stands accused of increasing electricity prices to make the CEB commercially attractive to investors at the expense of the public so as to facilitate its divestiture programme. The delay on the part of the government in procuring enough coal for the Norochcholai power complex cannot be considered unintentional; some corrupt politicians and bureaucrats allegedly benefit from increases in the cost of power generation.

The government seems to think that it will be able to prevent the country from being plunged into a situation like the one that led to the ouster of President Gotabaya Rajapaksa; it is busy procuring more vehicles and equipment for the police. There has been a let-up in public protests, but it is not due to any improvement in the government’s performance on the economic front, police crackdowns on agitations or threats issued by some ruling party leaders. There may be a carnival atmosphere at the Galle Face Green, which anti-government protesters occupied some moons ago, but that does not mean everything is copacetic, and the government can do as it pleases. Public anger is manifestly welling up; it is bound to find expression in popular uprisings again if the government continues to test people’s patience by increasing taxes and tariffs unconscionably in the name of economic recovery as though the public were responsible for the present crisis. Adding insult to injury, some cantankerous ministers are exuding arrogance and exhibiting a cavalier attitude towards the people’s suffering. They are playing with fire.

Meanwhile, the Opposition is apparently labouring under the delusion that it will be able to recover lost ground with the help of its leaders’ gimmicks without taking up serious politico-economic issues. Hence its leaders’ theatrics, which should be cut out. Most Opposition MPs were not present in Parliament when two important tax Bills were put to the vote on 09 Dec. The Value Added Tax (Amendment) Bill was passed with 82 ayes and 41 nays. The Inland Revenue (Amendment) Bill received 79 votes for and 36 against. It behoves all Opposition worthies to emulate Ranawaka and address serious issues for the sake of the public.