CEB explains need to buy privately produced power

The Ceylon Electricity Board said it could supply 75 units of hydro power at US$0.0451 per unit to every household.

But it would not be enough to meet the demand of the industrial sector, hotels and factories, compelling the CEB to buy thermal power from Private Power Providers paying US$ 0.5055 per unit.

Addressing the media at his Ministry, Power and Energy Minister Patali Champika Ranawaka said the difficulty facing the CEB was that it could not supply the full demand of electricity through hydro power and therefore had to purchase thermal power from private providers and the problem lay there.

 “Heads of every unit must have a programme to improve efficiency and productivity and control expenditure. The CEB will call for a monthly report from the head of the unit to check the progress,” Minister Ranawaka stressed.