Features
‘Sri Lankan geology allows hydro and solar power to be used in conjunction
Interview with CBE awardee Prof Ravi Silva
By Sajitha Prematunge
Every hour the Earth’s atmosphere receives enough solar radiation to meet electricity needs of every human being on Earth for a year. Consequently, the world’s greatest problem can be fixed with just one percent of solar radiation the earth receives. The catch? It’s exorbitant. Fulfilling energy needs has remained an insurmountable challenge for centuries as this huge influx of solar energy is wasted for want of a cost effective way of harnessing solar energy, at least until researchers, the likes of Prof Ravi Silva can fix it. Imagine a technology that would enable printing of solar cells using a process similar to that of printing a newspaper. It would enable production of square kilometres of organic solar cells at a fraction of the current cost, theoretically. This is the kind of cutting-edge technology Silva and his ilk are involved in. Following is an exclusive interview with recent CBE awardee Prof Ravi Silva.
UK-based scientist of Sri Lankan origin and Surrey University Advanced Technology Institute (ATI) Director, Professor Ravi Silva was recently awarded a CBE or Commander of the Order of the British Empire, one of the highest ranking Orders of the British Empire award, for his services to Science, Education and Research over the last three decades.
Silva joined the Cambridge University Engineering Department for his undergraduate and postgraduate work, immediately after his secondary education in Sri Lanka. He joined Surrey in 1995. He was one of the key investigators for the £10m ATI, established in 2002 with the hopes of bringing all solid state electronics and photonics research at Surrey into a dedicated institute. Silva has been its director of since 2005 and also heads the Nano-Electronics Centre (NEC), an interdisciplinary research activity. He helped set up one of the largest carbon nanotechnology laboratories at Surrey.
In 2013 he was elected a Distinguished Professor at Chonbuk National University and in 2016 a Visiting Professorship at Dalian Technology University, China. In April 2017 he was appointed Honarary Director to the Zengzhou Materials Genome Institute (ZMGI), China. In March 2018, he was elected joint Editor-in-Chief of Wiley’s Energy and Environmental Materials. More recently, he has set up the £4m industry-academia Nano-Manufacturing Centre and in 2019 the £1m Marcus Lee Printable Solar Cell Facility.
His research has resulted in over 620 presentations at international conferences, and over 600 journal papers, with circa 21,000 citations and won grants of over £30m over the last two decades. In 2002 he was awarded the Charles Vernon Boys Medal by the Institute of Physics, and in 2003 the IEE Achievement Award. The same year he was awarded the Albert Einstein Silver Medal and Javed Husain Prize by UNESCO for contributions to electronic devices. In 2003 the largest EPSRC Portfolio of £6.68M was awarded to Silva and his team on Integrated Electronics which examined nanoscale design features on the optical and photonic device properties. In 2004, SRIF award for £4M, to set up a Nano-Electronics Centre for multidisciplinary research, was awarded to Silva.
He was awarded the Royal Society Clifford Patterson Award for 2011. In 2014, he was awarded a premium medal by the Institute of Engineering and Technology (IET), the JJ Thompson Medal for contributions to Electrical and Electronic Engineering. In 2015, he won the Institute of Materials, Minerals & Mining (IOM3) premium award, the Platinum Medal for contributing to materials science, technology and industry. In 2016 he won the Government of Sri Lanka Presidential Award in recognition for many contributions in the field of nanotechnology.
Since 2005 he has worked with the National Science Foundation (NSF), Sri Lanka to develop nanotechnology as a vehicle to generate wealth and alleviate poverty in the country. Silva was on the advisory board of Imprimatur Ltd and the National Nanotechnology Initiative (NNI) of Sri Lanka. He was an Advisor to the Minister of Science and Technology in Sri Lanka, and helped set up the Sri Lanka Institute of NanoTechnology (SLINTec) and the Nano-Science Park NANCO (private) Ltd in 2008. He currently acts as an advisor to both these entities and sits on the director board. He has acted as advisor to many national and international organisations, including US, Korean, Japanese, Chinese, Indian, Sri Lankan, Singaporean, Saudi Arabian, Israeli, Hong Kong, Portuguese, Canadian, Brazilian and European governments.
His research interests encompass a wide range of activities with a focus in nanotechnology and renewables. Other fields of interest include electronic devices, sensors and X-ray detectors. “The area that is most significant at present is how to keep our planet safe for the next generation,” said Silva. He explained that climate change is an existential threat for humans, and we must reduce our carbon emissions. He pointed out that the best route to do so is with replacing fossil fuels with renewable energy. Much of his research at present looks at the fabrication and manufacture of new and cheap solar cells, together with battery storage that can act as an integrated solution to green energy provision.
Q:
Which of your research has been put to best practical use, in your opinion?
A:
There are a number of areas in which research conducted within my group has been put to good use. In the field of electronics, it is very difficult to pinpoint precisely where your devices are used as there are many thousands of devices and inventions in even basic consumer electronic systems. For example, patents from our group have been licensed to companies such as Philips, BAE systems, Airbus, Bombardier, Surrey Nano Systems and Silver Ray and they form components of a bigger system or application. The most obvious example of Nanotechnology developed in the group was in the winter Olympics at PyeongChang where the Hyundai Pavilion was covered with Vanta Black, the blackest man-made material in the world. This was also demonstrated through the paint on the BMW X6 model, ‘VBX6’ at the Frankfurt Motor show. These materials originated from research in my labs at Surrey.
Q: What are the contributions solar energy can make to drive the world to a carbon net zero position?
A:
Solar energy is crucial if the world is to go to a net carbon zero position. Typically, the Earth gets enough energy from the sun in one hour to power the entire population of earth for one year. Therefore, the current 80 percent use of fossil fuels to power the world must be decreased significantly in the next 50 years, to be replaced by green energy. In developed countries such as Germany there are predictions which show solar energy would make up 80 percent of the total energy use in 2100. This is simply due to the overwhelming evidence that points to these sources as the most appropriate green energy provider.
Q: Why are governments reluctant to commit fully to solar power?
A:
At present the cost of solar and the inbuilt infrastructure available for fossil fuels makes governments reluctant to examine other sources. The local energy generation and transmission system will need to be overhauled and new investments made in energy, supply, transmission, storage and distribution.
Q: What can Sri Lanka do to popularise renewable energy?
A:
Sri Lanka’s renewable energy efforts are mostly ad-hoc and requires coherent policy and planning. Education on the advantages of renewable energy and how it can be implemented can help. At present, should a full cost analysis be performed on solar energy, it will come up as the most cost-efficient energy provision available in countries such as Sri Lanka.
Q: How do you manage higher efficiency solar energy technology, while maintaining lower cost?
A:
The cost of solar energy provision has been coming down exponentially. If we take one of the measures to judge the cost of solar electricity, cost per Watt, in 1970 this was an eye watering US$74 per Watt. This dropped to below US$ 10 in 1990 and today this is below US$ 20 cents per Watt. The Obama regime ran the Sun Shot Challenge to push the cost of solar electricity below US$ 1 per Watt, as this was when it became competitive with fossils. We are well below that now, and the cost keeps getting lower. Current 450W solar modules can be obtained highly competitively below US 150 if it is bought in bulk.
Q: Yet you have admitted that energy is one thing that has defied all economic models, including the axiom of Supply and Demand. Why have solar energy expenses kept rising rather than coming down, with technological development?
A:
Adam Smith said supply and demand should dictate cost. In solar there is 10,000 times over supply of energy. The problem is the cost of solar cells. We are looking to reduce this with sprayable solar cells. But even today the cost of solar for large solar farms can be well below 10 cents US$, if the infrastructure is provided for the investment to take place. For example in India large solar farms have been set up with costs as low as US$ 4 cents per kilowatt hour with the number below US$ 2cents in Mexico. There is no reason to believe we cannot have similar low-cost solar electricity in Sri Lanka.
Q: What are energy cost drivers, and do they apply to the World Energy provision and by extension to Sri Lanka?
A:
Ease of production of energy, raw material provision and the infrastructure dictates the final costs. There is no reason to believe we cannot provide the raw materials needed, when this happens to be sun light. Furthermore, with the enviable hill country with hydroelectricity provision we have a ready-made battery to store energy with pumped hydro.
Q: Do you mean hydropower can be used in conjunction as a storage technology, to store solar energy during off peak hours or during the day and discharge it by night?
A:
Absolutely. Nature has blessed Sri Lanka with some wonderful geology to allow for this to be done at scale. The NSF and universities should be looking to build on this to provide the country with the ideal solutions to their energy needs. Pumped hydro can be used to store hydro-energy when there is too much electricity produced by solar energy, so it can be used in the nights. The 40 percent hydro-provision is near ideal to ensure base load needs are met, for the rest of the energy to come from solar and wind. I am also sure there will be large scale battery provisions coming soon, with companies such as Tesla and 8minutes already demonstrating this.
Q: What are smart grids and its benefits?
A:
If renewable energies are to contribute to nations energy provision, they need to be able to interface well with the current energy provision and transmission. In particular for solar and wind-based energy to feed-into the national grid, a robust energy network with smart grid provision will help. Smart grids also allow for smaller local networks to provide renewable energy in an efficient manner, having appropriate interfacing with the on-grid supply and often back-up energy storage provision.
Q: What obstacles delay power generation sectors from adopting smart grids?
A:
The singular obstacle is inertia and sticking to old infrastructure, without looking to plan ahead for future energy provision.
Q:
What are polymer cells or organic photovoltaics, and their benefits.
A: In the future, using polymer technology, we can produce solar cells with 15 percent efficiency at a fraction the cost of silicon solar cells. This is driven primarily by the very much lower material cost, together with the thousand-fold decrease in active materials used to make solar cells. By adding nanoparticles into the polymer solar cells you can improve the efficiency even further and thereby give better energy per cost. Under these circumstances the energy payback time is below six months.
Q: What is carbon electronics? And what are its applications for a developing country like Sri Lanka?
A:
Carbon electronics uses the element C for the fabrication of electronic devices. Nano-carbons such as graphene, carbon nanotubes and polymers are becoming more important on a daily basis to provide solutions in electronics, energy and structural materials.
For Sri Lanka, it can make a huge difference. Particularly when some of the highest quality graphene can be produced with the vein graphite available in the country. This can not only be used for next generation electronic devices, but also for lighting and even electrodes for batteries. Companies such as Ceylon Graphene Ltd. have been established in the Sri Lanka Institute of Nanotechnology (SLINTEC) to provide just this impetus to the national innovation eco-system.
Q: Where does carbon electronics factor in, solar energy generation?
A:
Polymer based carbons, particularly if mixed with nanomaterials can be used for next generation solar cells. Only a fraction of the material needed in Silicon solar cells, to produce high quality modules, is required when polymer based carbons are used as active materials.
Q: What are carbon electronics’ other benefits?
A:
We can also use the nano-carbon materials to make major components of the battery, such as its electrodes. So, not only energy scavenging, carbon electronics can also help in energy storage.
Q: What are the benefits of unlimited energy?
A:
Some say there is a significant correlation between national development and energy use per capita. The worlds most developed countries also have the highest per capita use of energy.
If we had unlimited energy, the world would be a very different place. With unlimited energy we can wipe out the poverty gaps between the nations; there will be enough energy to provide clean water to all using desalination technologies; we can wipe out famine with food crops grown under ideal conditions; we can ensure maximum energy is focussed on new drugs, vaccines and highly nutritious foods.
Q: What is your opinion on research culture in Sri Lanka Universities?
A:
Sri Lanka universities have high quality researchers, but less provision for them to be able to fully exploit their prowess to help the nation or have an enterprise culture to contribute to society. A step change is needed to motivate researchers to help elevate the country’s science and technology base with their efforts. High quality research should also be given fast track promotion within the sector.
Q:
In a technological perspective which areas are viable for expansion and which are not, for a country like Sri Lanka?
A:
Sri Lanka needs to motivate and energise the younger generation to contribute fully to the nation. Training in enterprise and spinouts should be made available with suitable grants for technologists to develop their inventions and products. The eco-system for entrepreneurship should be developed, with the universities taking a lead by example, on how they can value add to Sri Lankan raw materials and technologies. In the fields of nanotechnology, energy, materials, AI and new technologies they have much to offer.
by Dr Gotabhya Ranasinghe
Senior Consultant Cardiologist
National Hospital Sri Lanka
When we sought a meeting with Hon Dr. Ramesh Pathirana, Minister of Health, he graciously cleared his busy schedule to accommodate us. Renowned for his attentive listening and deep understanding, Minister Pathirana is dedicated to advancing the health sector. His openness and transparency exemplify the qualities of an exemplary politician and minister.
Dr. Palitha Mahipala, the current Health Secretary, demonstrates both commendable enthusiasm and unwavering support. This combination of attributes makes him a highly compatible colleague for the esteemed Minister of Health.
Our discussion centered on a project that has been in the works for the past 30 years, one that no other minister had managed to advance.
Minister Pathirana, however, recognized the project’s significance and its potential to revolutionize care for heart patients.
The project involves the construction of a state-of-the-art facility at the premises of the National Hospital Colombo. The project’s location within the premises of the National Hospital underscores its importance and relevance to the healthcare infrastructure of the nation.
This facility will include a cardiology building and a tertiary care center, equipped with the latest technology to handle and treat all types of heart-related conditions and surgeries.
Securing funding was a major milestone for this initiative. Minister Pathirana successfully obtained approval for a $40 billion loan from the Asian Development Bank. With the funding in place, the foundation stone is scheduled to be laid in September this year, and construction will begin in January 2025.
This project guarantees a consistent and uninterrupted supply of stents and related medications for heart patients. As a result, patients will have timely access to essential medical supplies during their treatment and recovery. By securing these critical resources, the project aims to enhance patient outcomes, minimize treatment delays, and maintain the highest standards of cardiac care.
Upon its fruition, this monumental building will serve as a beacon of hope and healing, symbolizing the unwavering dedication to improving patient outcomes and fostering a healthier society.We anticipate a future marked by significant progress and positive outcomes in Sri Lanka’s cardiovascular treatment landscape within the foreseeable timeframe.
by Fr. Emmanuel Fernando, OMI
Jesuit Fr. Aloysius Pieris (affectionately called Fr. Aloy) celebrated his 90th birthday on April 9, 2024 and I, as the editor of our Oblate Journal, THE MISSIONARY OBLATE had gone to press by that time. Immediately I decided to publish an article, appreciating the untiring selfless services he continues to offer for inter-Faith dialogue, the renewal of the Catholic Church, his concern for the poor and the suffering Sri Lankan masses and to me, the present writer.
It was in 1988, when I was appointed Director of the Oblate Scholastics at Ampitiya by the then Oblate Provincial Fr. Anselm Silva, that I came to know Fr. Aloy more closely. Knowing well his expertise in matters spiritual, theological, Indological and pastoral, and with the collaborative spirit of my companion-formators, our Oblate Scholastics were sent to Tulana, the Research and Encounter Centre, Kelaniya, of which he is the Founder-Director, for ‘exposure-programmes’ on matters spiritual, biblical, theological and pastoral. Some of these dimensions according to my view and that of my companion-formators, were not available at the National Seminary, Ampitiya.
Ever since that time, our Oblate formators/ accompaniers at the Oblate Scholasticate, Ampitiya , have continued to send our Oblate Scholastics to Tulana Centre for deepening their insights and convictions regarding matters needed to serve the people in today’s context. Fr. Aloy also had tried very enthusiastically with the Oblate team headed by Frs. Oswald Firth and Clement Waidyasekara to begin a Theologate, directed by the Religious Congregations in Sri Lanka, for the contextual formation/ accompaniment of their members. It should very well be a desired goal of the Leaders / Provincials of the Religious Congregations.
Besides being a formator/accompanier at the Oblate Scholasticate, I was entrusted also with the task of editing and publishing our Oblate journal, ‘The Missionary Oblate’. To maintain the quality of the journal I continue to depend on Fr. Aloy for his thought-provoking and stimulating articles on Biblical Spirituality, Biblical Theology and Ecclesiology. I am very grateful to him for his generous assistance. Of late, his writings on renewal of the Church, initiated by Pope St. John XX111 and continued by Pope Francis through the Synodal path, published in our Oblate journal, enable our readers to focus their attention also on the needed renewal in the Catholic Church in Sri Lanka. Fr. Aloy appreciated very much the Synodal path adopted by the Jesuit Pope Francis for the renewal of the Church, rooted very much on prayerful discernment. In my Religious and presbyteral life, Fr.Aloy continues to be my spiritual animator / guide and ongoing formator / acccompanier.
Fr. Aloysius Pieris, BA Hons (Lond), LPh (SHC, India), STL (PFT, Naples), PhD (SLU/VC), ThD (Tilburg), D.Ltt (KU), has been one of the eminent Asian theologians well recognized internationally and one who has lectured and held visiting chairs in many universities both in the West and in the East. Many members of Religious Congregations from Asian countries have benefited from his lectures and guidance in the East Asian Pastoral Institute (EAPI) in Manila, Philippines. He had been a Theologian consulted by the Federation of Asian Bishops’ Conferences for many years. During his professorship at the Gregorian University in Rome, he was called to be a member of a special group of advisers on other religions consulted by Pope Paul VI.
Fr. Aloy is the author of more than 30 books and well over 500 Research Papers. Some of his books and articles have been translated and published in several countries. Among those books, one can find the following: 1) The Genesis of an Asian Theology of Liberation (An Autobiographical Excursus on the Art of Theologising in Asia, 2) An Asian Theology of Liberation, 3) Providential Timeliness of Vatican 11 (a long-overdue halt to a scandalous millennium, 4) Give Vatican 11 a chance, 5) Leadership in the Church, 6) Relishing our faith in working for justice (Themes for study and discussion), 7) A Message meant mainly, not exclusively for Jesuits (Background information necessary for helping Francis renew the Church), 8) Lent in Lanka (Reflections and Resolutions, 9) Love meets wisdom (A Christian Experience of Buddhism, 10) Fire and Water 11) God’s Reign for God’s poor, 12) Our Unhiddden Agenda (How we Jesuits work, pray and form our men). He is also the Editor of two journals, Vagdevi, Journal of Religious Reflection and Dialogue, New Series.
Fr. Aloy has a BA in Pali and Sanskrit from the University of London and a Ph.D in Buddhist Philosophy from the University of Sri Lankan, Vidyodaya Campus. On Nov. 23, 2019, he was awarded the prestigious honorary Doctorate of Literature (D.Litt) by the Chancellor of the University of Kelaniya, the Most Venerable Welamitiyawe Dharmakirthi Sri Kusala Dhamma Thera.
Fr. Aloy continues to be a promoter of Gospel values and virtues. Justice as a constitutive dimension of love and social concern for the downtrodden masses are very much noted in his life and work. He had very much appreciated the commitment of the late Fr. Joseph (Joe) Fernando, the National Director of the Social and Economic Centre (SEDEC) for the poor.
In Sri Lanka, a few religious Congregations – the Good Shepherd Sisters, the Christian Brothers, the Marist Brothers and the Oblates – have invited him to animate their members especially during their Provincial Congresses, Chapters and International Conferences. The mainline Christian Churches also have sought his advice and followed his seminars. I, for one, regret very much, that the Sri Lankan authorities of the Catholic Church –today’s Hierarchy—- have not sought Fr.
Aloy’s expertise for the renewal of the Catholic Church in Sri Lanka and thus have not benefited from the immense store of wisdom and insight that he can offer to our local Church while the Sri Lankan bishops who governed the Catholic church in the immediate aftermath of the Second Vatican Council (Edmund Fernando OMI, Anthony de Saram, Leo Nanayakkara OSB, Frank Marcus Fernando, Paul Perera,) visited him and consulted him on many matters. Among the Tamil Bishops, Bishop Rayappu Joseph was keeping close contact with him and Bishop J. Deogupillai hosted him and his team visiting him after the horrible Black July massacre of Tamils.
Sri Lanka-Singapore Free Trade Agreement
By Gomi Senadhira
senadhiragomi@gmail.com
“You might tell fairy tales, but the progress of a country cannot be achieved through such narratives. A country cannot be developed by making false promises. The country moved backward because of the electoral promises made by political parties throughout time. We have witnessed that the ultimate result of this is the country becoming bankrupt. Unfortunately, many segments of the population have not come to realize this yet.” – President Ranil Wickremesinghe, 2024 Budget speech
Any Sri Lankan would agree with the above words of President Wickremesinghe on the false promises our politicians and officials make and the fairy tales they narrate which bankrupted this country. So, to understand this, let’s look at one such fairy tale with lots of false promises; Ranil Wickremesinghe’s greatest achievement in the area of international trade and investment promotion during the Yahapalana period, Sri Lanka-Singapore Free Trade Agreement (SLSFTA).
It is appropriate and timely to do it now as Finance Minister Wickremesinghe has just presented to parliament a bill on the National Policy on Economic Transformation which includes the establishment of an Office for International Trade and the Sri Lanka Institute of Economics and International Trade.
Was SLSFTA a “Cleverly negotiated Free Trade Agreement” as stated by the (former) Minister of Development Strategies and International Trade Malik Samarawickrama during the Parliamentary Debate on the SLSFTA in July 2018, or a colossal blunder covered up with lies, false promises, and fairy tales? After SLSFTA was signed there were a number of fairy tales published on this agreement by the Ministry of Development Strategies and International, Institute of Policy Studies, and others.
However, for this article, I would like to limit my comments to the speech by Minister Samarawickrama during the Parliamentary Debate, and the two most important areas in the agreement which were covered up with lies, fairy tales, and false promises, namely: revenue loss for Sri Lanka and Investment from Singapore. On the other important area, “Waste products dumping” I do not want to comment here as I have written extensively on the issue.
1. The revenue loss
During the Parliamentary Debate in July 2018, Minister Samarawickrama stated “…. let me reiterate that this FTA with Singapore has been very cleverly negotiated by us…. The liberalisation programme under this FTA has been carefully designed to have the least impact on domestic industry and revenue collection. We have included all revenue sensitive items in the negative list of items which will not be subject to removal of tariff. Therefore, 97.8% revenue from Customs duty is protected. Our tariff liberalisation will take place over a period of 12-15 years! In fact, the revenue earned through tariffs on goods imported from Singapore last year was Rs. 35 billion.
The revenue loss for over the next 15 years due to the FTA is only Rs. 733 million– which when annualised, on average, is just Rs. 51 million. That is just 0.14% per year! So anyone who claims the Singapore FTA causes revenue loss to the Government cannot do basic arithmetic! Mr. Speaker, in conclusion, I call on my fellow members of this House – don’t mislead the public with baseless criticism that is not grounded in facts. Don’t look at petty politics and use these issues for your own political survival.”
I was surprised to read the minister’s speech because an article published in January 2018 in “The Straits Times“, based on information released by the Singaporean Negotiators stated, “…. With the FTA, tariff savings for Singapore exports are estimated to hit $10 million annually“.
As the annual tariff savings (that is the revenue loss for Sri Lanka) calculated by the Singaporean Negotiators, Singaporean $ 10 million (Sri Lankan rupees 1,200 million in 2018) was way above the rupees’ 733 million revenue loss for 15 years estimated by the Sri Lankan negotiators, it was clear to any observer that one of the parties to the agreement had not done the basic arithmetic!
Six years later, according to a report published by “The Morning” newspaper, speaking at the Committee on Public Finance (COPF) on 7th May 2024, Mr Samarawickrama’s chief trade negotiator K.J. Weerasinghehad had admitted “…. that forecasted revenue loss for the Government of Sri Lanka through the Singapore FTA is Rs. 450 million in 2023 and Rs. 1.3 billion in 2024.”
If these numbers are correct, as tariff liberalisation under the SLSFTA has just started, we will pass Rs 2 billion very soon. Then, the question is how Sri Lanka’s trade negotiators made such a colossal blunder. Didn’t they do their basic arithmetic? If they didn’t know how to do basic arithmetic they should have at least done their basic readings. For example, the headline of the article published in The Straits Times in January 2018 was “Singapore, Sri Lanka sign FTA, annual savings of $10m expected”.
Anyway, as Sri Lanka’s chief negotiator reiterated at the COPF meeting that “…. since 99% of the tariffs in Singapore have zero rates of duty, Sri Lanka has agreed on 80% tariff liberalisation over a period of 15 years while expecting Singapore investments to address the imbalance in trade,” let’s turn towards investment.
Investment from Singapore
In July 2018, speaking during the Parliamentary Debate on the FTA this is what Minister Malik Samarawickrama stated on investment from Singapore, “Already, thanks to this FTA, in just the past two-and-a-half months since the agreement came into effect we have received a proposal from Singapore for investment amounting to $ 14.8 billion in an oil refinery for export of petroleum products. In addition, we have proposals for a steel manufacturing plant for exports ($ 1 billion investment), flour milling plant ($ 50 million), sugar refinery ($ 200 million). This adds up to more than $ 16.05 billion in the pipeline on these projects alone.
And all of these projects will create thousands of more jobs for our people. In principle approval has already been granted by the BOI and the investors are awaiting the release of land the environmental approvals to commence the project.
I request the Opposition and those with vested interests to change their narrow-minded thinking and join us to develop our country. We must always look at what is best for the whole community, not just the few who may oppose. We owe it to our people to courageously take decisions that will change their lives for the better.”
According to the media report I quoted earlier, speaking at the Committee on Public Finance (COPF) Chief Negotiator Weerasinghe has admitted that Sri Lanka was not happy with overall Singapore investments that have come in the past few years in return for the trade liberalisation under the Singapore-Sri Lanka Free Trade Agreement. He has added that between 2021 and 2023 the total investment from Singapore had been around $162 million!
What happened to those projects worth $16 billion negotiated, thanks to the SLSFTA, in just the two-and-a-half months after the agreement came into effect and approved by the BOI? I do not know about the steel manufacturing plant for exports ($ 1 billion investment), flour milling plant ($ 50 million) and sugar refinery ($ 200 million).
However, story of the multibillion-dollar investment in the Petroleum Refinery unfolded in a manner that would qualify it as the best fairy tale with false promises presented by our politicians and the officials, prior to 2019 elections.
Though many Sri Lankans got to know, through the media which repeatedly highlighted a plethora of issues surrounding the project and the questionable credentials of the Singaporean investor, the construction work on the Mirrijiwela Oil Refinery along with the cement factory began on the24th of March 2019 with a bang and Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe and his ministers along with the foreign and local dignitaries laid the foundation stones.
That was few months before the 2019 Presidential elections. Inaugurating the construction work Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe said the projects will create thousands of job opportunities in the area and surrounding districts.
The oil refinery, which was to be built over 200 acres of land, with the capacity to refine 200,000 barrels of crude oil per day, was to generate US$7 billion of exports and create 1,500 direct and 3,000 indirect jobs. The construction of the refinery was to be completed in 44 months. Four years later, in August 2023 the Cabinet of Ministers approved the proposal presented by President Ranil Wickremesinghe to cancel the agreement with the investors of the refinery as the project has not been implemented! Can they explain to the country how much money was wasted to produce that fairy tale?
It is obvious that the President, ministers, and officials had made huge blunders and had deliberately misled the public and the parliament on the revenue loss and potential investment from SLSFTA with fairy tales and false promises.
As the president himself said, a country cannot be developed by making false promises or with fairy tales and these false promises and fairy tales had bankrupted the country. “Unfortunately, many segments of the population have not come to realize this yet”.
(The writer, a specialist and an activist on trade and development issues . )
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