Sunshine Energy opens third hydropower plant

From left: Sunshine Energy General Manager Aroshan Seresinhe, Sunshine Energy Managing Director Shyam Sathasivam, Sunshine Holdings Group Managing Director Vish Govindasamy and Waltrim Energy Director Harin Udeshi 

• Adds 2.4 MW to the national grid

Sunshine Energy Ltd. (SEL), a fully-owned subsidiary of Sri Lanka’s diversified conglomerate Sunshine Holdings Plc, opened its third hydropower plant Elgin recently in the town of Lindula in the Central Province. 

Sunshine Energy’s Elgin plant will contribute 2.4 MW to the national grid. With the addition of the third plant, Sunshine Energy now contributes close to 7 MW to the national grid through its mini-hydropower plants.

The Elgin plant was ceremoniously opened by Sunshine Holdings Group Managing Director Vish Govindasamy in the presence of Sunshine Energy’s senior management, Sunshine Energy employees, government officials and other dignitaries. 

Sunshine Energy’s foray into further sustainable and greener energy opportunities falls in line with Sri Lanka’s national plan of developing renewable energy, where by 2050 the country aspires to become carbon neutral by harvesting and developing renewable energy sources such as biomass, hydro, solar and wind power. 

Expressing his views following the plant’s official opening, Govindasamy said: “Today, Sunshine Holdings’ energy business sits squarely in the nation-building space, with the potential to contribute significantly towards the annual 6-7% increase in power demand. Sri Lanka is gifted with several types of renewable energy sources and with the national vision aligned towards becoming a carbon neutral nation, the demand for such sources is definitely on the rise.”

“In preparation for this future, Sunshine Energy is gearing itself as a responsible business entity in Sri Lanka through investments in hydropower plants. The newly-opened Elgin hydropower plant further promotes Sunshine Energy’s extensive adoption of energy efficiency platforms in the pursuit of sustainable development, economic growth, local value creation and prosperity,” Govindasamy added. 

The completion of the Elgin hydropower plant has also led to several initiatives where Sunshine Energy got directly involved in improving the infrastructure and quality of life within its operating areas. These initiatives included renovating the area’s key infrastructure including roads, drains, culverts, bridges and community halls, enhancing the livelihood of people by improving electrification connectivity in the area, renovating places of worship and providing employment opportunities for the local community. 

In collaboration with Global Hydro Energy (GHE), Sunshine Energy has built a comprehensive plant monitoring system where a single window viewing screen enables the company to monitor how much power is being generated at each of their plants and monitor the working capacities of turbines and other key components. 

Sunshine Energy’s quest towards green energy production gathered momentum in February 2019 when it installed its first rooftop solar PV system in Kelaniya. Currently, the company is operating with three rooftop solar projects, contributing approximately 1 MW to the national grid with a combined capacity in excess of 7.5 MW.