Power cuts to remain for 1.5 - 2 years: PUCSL Chief 

• Insists on changing power generation mix to more renewable energy sources 

Says fuel hike announced was unwarranted as it reflects import costs not global price adjustments 

Claims fuel price formula is unscientific and unfair by motorists 

The Public Utilities Commission of Sri Lanka Chairman Janaka Rathnayake yesterday said the scheduled power cuts will remain for the next one and half years to two years, till the Government overcomes the foreign exchange crisis and shift to renewable energy sources.

“We cannot give electricity users an exact timeline as to when the power cuts will come to an end till the Government finds a long-term solution to the foreign exchange crisis. The Government needs to change the power generation mix to more renewable energy sources,” he told journalists yesterday.

He also said that they could manage the existing supply of power with a three to four-hour daily load shed till the end of the year, subject to Sri Lanka not having to overcome any drastic challenges in the next six months.

“At the moment we have 57% water in the hydropower generating reservoirs and the work of the Norochcholai coal power plant will be back within 60-days we hope to manage supply with a 3-4 hour power cut. Thus, the proposed tariff revision is essential. We hope to manage the available resources till the end of December, unless otherwise there is some major setback where we cannot source fuel,” Rathnayake added.

The PUCSL Chief claimed the fuel hike announced by the Government on Sunday was unwarranted, as it reflects the import cost and not the international market price. “I do not see it as a price formula because it includes the import and related costs. There is no scientific base to the formula. It shows a price of oil barrel at $ 176, whilst the actual price is $ 112 per barrel. It was unfair to the consumers to buy a product at a higher cost of over Rs. 400 - Rs. 500. Even the global oil prices did not increase during the last couple of months,” he claimed.

Rathnayake explained that the Government has to resort to spot purchases at a higher price away from the tender process given the foreign exchange crisis.

He assured that the Commission decided on a methodology considering the average oil price in the market rates, without resorting to the fuel prices announced by the Government.