Southern Province to be connected to CEB national grid by Sunday – Energy Minister

Minister of Power and Energy Kanchana Wijesekera has assured that the remaining work pertaining to the laying of power cables connecting the Southern Province to the main transmission line of the Ceylon Electricity Board (CEB) will be completed by Sunday (20 Aug).

The Minister made these remarks during a special press briefing held at the Ministry’s premises in Colombo this afternoon (15 Aug).

Issues pertaining to the laying of the said power cables through a private estate in Siripagama, Ratnapura were resolved on 11 August, when the Artigala family, owners of the tea estate in question, consented the move without claiming any compensation from CEB or the Public Utilities Commission of Sri Lanka (PUCSL).

The issue had originated after the land owners initially demanded a compensation of Rs. 48 million following a private estimate and then Rs. 9.6 million pursuant to Asian Development Bank (ADB) criteria, while the CEB had agreed to pay Rs. 1.6 million in compensation for the loss of land to lay a 630-meter power cable which would allow the Southern Province to be connected to CEB’s main transmission line.

Meanwhile, Minister Wijesekera also noted that despite certain claims, the need for scheduled power cuts has not arisen yet, and accused certain parties of ‘misguiding’ the public in this regard.