‘Always- breakdown’ Norochcholai power plant now runs at reasonable capacity

The fault in a 300 MW unit at the Lakvijaya Power Station in Norochcholai has been restored and the plant is currently running at reasonable capacity adding 600 MW to the national grid with the activation of its third generator, Ceylon Electricity Board (CEB) sources said.

Under these circumstance there is no need for power cuts, a senior official of CEB confirmed pointing out that two units were currently running at full capacity while one unit was going through routine maintenance.

 “The issue was with one unit and it was restored and there is no breakdown at Norochcholai,” he said, adding that even if there was a fault in one unit, the grid had enough hydro power and therefore, there was no issue in supplying the electricity. The Chinese-built coal power plants in Norochcholai has suffered breakdowns from time to time since its construction.

However Energy Minister Udaya Gammanpila has warned of daily power cuts of up to four hours if the country fails to secure a “large loan” by March 2022.

Sri Lanka has been facing a severe foreign exchange shortage with falling reserves. This has led to the currency losing value, making imports costly.

The country is also grappling with a shortage of almost all essentials, including fuel. The state power units have been unable to run turbines, forcing the government to impose power cuts are at peak hours earlier.

Minister Gammanpila also stated that Sri Lanka will have to import fuel with the existing limited foreign reserves, at least until the monsoon season begins in April. (Bandula)