News
Bid to cut solar power production during low demand; committee studies curtailment mechanism
View(s):By Namini Wijedasa
The Ceylon Electricity Board (CEB) has appointed a committee to introduce a “curtailment mechanism” for solar power systems to cut production when electricity demand is low.
If implemented, the move will be a blow to small-scale power producers who have invested in the hope of both returns and cheaper electricity bills.
The eight-member committee is headed by National System Control Centre (NSCC) Chief Engineer W.A.R.S. Weeratunga. Its appointment took place just two days before last Sunday’s countrywide blackout.
“As the integration of Non-Conventional Renewable Energy (NCRE), particularly Solar Photovoltaic (PV) systems, continues to expand within the national grid, it has become imperative to introduce a curtailment mechanism for maintaining grid stability, particularly during periods of low electricity demand, such as on mercantile holidays and Sundays, when commercial and industrial activities are minimal,” states a letter to Mr. Weeratunga from the CEB’s Additional General Manager (Transmission-Non-Wired Operations).
“Until a permanent and sustainable NCRE curtailment solution is established, this interim measure will help manage the imbalance between energy supply and demand, ensuring the grid remains stable and reliable during these critical times,” it says.
It is not clear how this will be implemented. “Almost all of the NCRE feed-in tariff-based renewable projects are contractually designed as must-run plants,” said Vidhura Ralapanawe, energy sector analyst and a strong proponent of renewable energy. “There are no curtailment provisions in the power purchase agreement. There are no curtailment provisions in rooftop solar agreements, either.”
“The tariffs for these systems are calculated without taking curtailment into consideration, and if the CEB tries to do that (outside of legal provisions), the investors and homeowners will run into financial challenges,” he warned.
The proposed curtailment mechanism will be implemented with the CEBAssist Solutions (the CEB’s digital platform that allows customers to pay their bills online, among other things) “by integrating the relevant OT [operational technology] systems to regulate NCRE plant generation while maintaining cybersecurity standards, the CEB AGM’s letter says.
The committee is tasked with identifying the power plants that could be “monitored and controlled” by the relevant distribution coordination committees (DCC); designing and implementing a curtailment mechanism that should be adopted by the DCC on the request of the NSCC as part of CEBAssist Solutions; and integrating with the relevant OT systems to enable real-time curtailment of ground-mounted solar plant generation.
It is also instructed to determine and incorporate a suitable algorithm for solar PV generation curtailment within CEBAssist Solutions and to create a process to implement a “transparent curtailment mechanism in order to avoid the curtailment of the same power plants in subsequent periods unless it is really necessary.”
Meanwhile, another committee—also headed by Engineer Weeratunga—has been appointed to develop an integrated rooftop solar monitoring system for real-time data collection. At present, this segment of electricity production cannot be seen by the CEB System Control.
The appointment letter says that rooftop solar PV generation contributes a significant portion of daytime energy generation at present, with total installed capacity exceeding 1,400 MW and continuing to grow.
“Therefore, it is essential to monitor this generation in real-time,” it states. “Having access to accurate and real-time rooftop solar generation data at the NSCC will enable more informed decision-making in planning the generation and system frequency balancing.”
This committee was set up on January 28, 2025, and is instructed to integrate rooftop solar inverter manufacturers’ monitoring platforms with CEBAssist Solutions; poll real-time generation data from smart meters installed at rooftop solar customer locations; develop a mechanism to present the collected data via the CEBAssist NCRE Desk Module at the NSCC; and establish “a methodology to systematically include new rooftop solar connections into this monitoring platform, ensuring scalability and efficiency.”
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