Rapid renewable energy generation plan in place from June

The government will launch a rapid renewable energy generation plan from the 1st of June, says the Minister of Power and Energy Kanchana Wijesekara.

The lawmaker, noting that the fuel bill for power generation has exceeded USD 100 million per month and that the average cost per unit generation has increased to Rs 48, presented two quick solutions for the energy crisis.

As the first solution, he proposed to convert industries, state sector institutions, hospitals, hotels and other roof space available to solar panels.

“With tariff rate changes proposed, the current electricity bill will triple in most of the above sectors. They can invest the current electricity bill amount on solar panels to be paid monthly to the solar companies to lessen the burden on their institutes and also CEB grid,” Minister Wijesekara said further.

The Ceylon Electricity Board (CEB) can manage the hydro and thermal power plants to be used during the night time to reduce generation cost, he added.

As the second solution, he suggested granting provisional approvals immediately for proposed projects. The rates should be revised reasonably, the minister pointed out. After the provincial approval is given, it is proposed to work together with the CEB and Sri Lanka Sustainable Energy Authority (SLSEA) and investors for transmission line and grid capacity enhancement with the required investment coming from the project investor, he continued.

“This will speed up the project timeline.”

Apart from these two  quick steps, large scale investments for selected renewable projects will be accommodated after technical and financial evaluation, the minister added.