May have to impose powers cuts in Southern Province - CEB warns ministry

The Ceylon Electricity Board (CEB) has warned the Ministry of Power that power cuts may have to be imposed in the Southern Province in the next few months if agreements signed with several Independent Power Producers (IPPs) are not renewed. 

If the Government was not moving to purchase emergency power, the CEB had recommended that power purchase agreements with these IPPs, which are due to expire soon, be extended. This was on the grounds that the drought situation may worsen in the next few months. Cabinet however, had refused to extend the agreements with the IPPs, which account for about 170MW of power currently being supplied to the national grid. 

The CEB though, has now written to the Power Ministry pointing out that if the agreements are not renewed and the Government did not move quickly to purchase emergency power, it would create a situation where the national grid will not be able to provide enough power to the Southern Province, which will have a shortfall of about 120MW when the IPPs are taken offline. 

If the drought situation was to worsen in the next few months, this will create a situation where the CEB will have no other choice but to impose power cuts in the Southern Province, it has informed the ministry.