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CEB to revise power plan to reach 70% renewable energy target
View(s):The Public Utilities Commission of Sri Lanka (PUCSL) has instructed the Ceylon Electricity Board to submit a new Long-Term Electricity Generation Plan (LTEGP) reflecting the national policy of 70 percent renewable energy, Chairman Janaka Ratnayake said.
The CEB last week submitted its existing LTEGP to the PUCSL, authoritative sources said. But this plan was drawn up according to the earlier Government policy for 50 percent renewable energy. This target has been revised upwards by an additional 20 percent under President Gotabaya Rajapaksa.
“We received direction from the Ministry of Power and Energy for the first time to proceed on the basis of 70 percent from renewable sources,” Mr Ratnayake said. “We wrote to the CEB instructing it to prepare the plan accordingly and to send it for approval.”
The CEB’s current LTGEP 2022-2041 included the 300MW extension to the Lakvijaya coal power plant and a new 300MW coal power plant in Foul Point, Trincomalee.
Under its recently updated Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) under the Paris Agreement, SrI Lanka has committed to a 32 percent increase of its forest cover by 2030; and to a reduction in greenhouse gas emissions by 14.5 percent for the period 2021-2030 from power, transport, industry, waste, forestry and agriculture sectors.
It further committed to “achieve 70% renewable energy in electricity generation by 2030” and to achieve “carbon neutrality by 2050 in electricity generation”. And there will be “no capacity addition of coal power plants”.