CEB failed to settle renewable energy industry bill for 13 months: Solar Industries Assn.

The Solar Industries Association (SIA) said today that the Ceylon Electricity Board (CEB) has not settled their bills for the renewable energy procurements amounting to Rs. 40 billion for the past 13 months.

Addressing the media, the association’s president, Asanka Tennakoon said that they are facing a daunting task of keeping the nation lit with minimal disruption to ensure smooth functioning of industries and economy which are highly dependent on energy security.

The renewable energy industry has been the unsung hero who helps to keep power cuts as low as to two hours, so everyone can enjoy having 22 hours of electricity per day. However, this is achieved at heavy losses to the renewable energy industry, including solar, wind and mini-hydro power sources.

It's an irony that there is no reasonable time frame or plan to pay the renewable energy suppliers. Payments which are due to renewable energy suppliers are being diverted to buy coal and diesel to run thermal power plants. Coal contributes to approximately 40% of our electricity demand. Without coal, the country could experience power cuts for up to 12 hours or more per day. 

The SIA has an installed capacity of over 800 MWp, producing over 3 GWh per day on average, which amounts to 7.5% of the total daily energy requirement of the country. This value of solar energy alone is approximately Rs. 70 million, which offsets the cost of diesel-powered energy, which would have cost Rs. 300 million per day. 

"The industry hasn't got any financial capability to grow and is in the verge of collapse. Most solar power plants are in bankruptcy or on the verge of being shut down. CEB has unfortunately taken it for granted that payments for renewable energy, including solar, can easily be overlooked. We are aware that CEB borrows money at a rate of over 30% to purchase coal. They do not, however, pay the dues to the renewable energy industry, which must absorb the cost of additional interest on their borrowings," Tennakoon explained. (Chaturanga Pradeep Samarawickrama)

Pix by Kithsiri de Mel