Largest wind power plant Thambapavani declared open

Sri Lanka’s first State-owned wind power plant was declared open by Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa in Mannar on Tuesday.

The Thambapavani Power Plant, the largest wind power plant in the country, was connected to the national grid today. As the first step, the plant will generate 100 megawatts of power.

The Mannar Wind Power Project is the largest wind power project of the Ceylon Electricity Board, with a capacity of 103.5 MW with an estimated investment of $ 200 million. The project is funded by a loan from the Asian Development Bank.

The contract for the construction of the 100 MW plant on the southern beach of Mannar island was awarded to Denmark’s Vesta Asia Pacific, a global leader in installing wind power plants.

The power plant has 30 V126-3.45 MW wind turbines generating 3.45 MW each installed along a 12.5 km stretch of coastline.

Minister of Power Dullas Alahapperuma pointed out that considering the electricity capacity generated by this project, it is possible to save 2,000 million litres of diesel in 20 years.