The Ceylon Electricity Board has confirmed that power cuts have been imposed to certain areas in the island.
When inquired by NewsRadio, CEB Additional General Manager and Media Spokesperson Andrew Nawamani said power cuts have been imposed since the Kelanitissa Power Plant has been shut down owing to lack of fuel.
He said without the Kelanitissa Power Plant, they cannot meet the current power demand. Andrew Nawamani said although they were due to receive fuel from the Ceylon Petroleum Corporation earlier today, as of 5pm the Kelanitissa Power Plant has not received the necessary diesel stocks.
He said the CPC has agreed to provide 300MT of fuel on an hour basis. The CEB Spokesperson noted that however power generation at the Kelanitissa Power Plant will not resume immediately even if it receives fuel stocks.
Meanwhile, power outages have been reported from various parts of the country.
According to NewsRadio area correspondents, a number of areas including Nugegoda, Nawala, Piliyandala, Kesbewa have experienced power outages.
Meanwhile, the Ceylon Electricity Board Engineers’ Union says they may have to resort to manual load shedding due to lack of fuel for electricity generation.
Accordingly, residents of certain areas could experience power cuts for 1 hour and 45 minutes this evening.
Speaking to NewsRadio, Executive Committee Member Charitha Jayanath Dayaratna said due to lack of diesel at 2 this morning, they shut down the Kelanithissa Combined Cycle Power Station which generates 165MW of power while this afternoon the Kelanitissa GT7 Power Station which generates 115MW of power was also closed.
He said accordingly, they will be compelled to resort to manual load shedding to manage the loss of 280MW of power.
Charitha Jayanath Dayaratna noted however, since officials have promised to provide necessary fuel for electricity generation, only certain areas may experience power cuts.
He said the country has been categorised under four groups, adding power outages will be imposed systematically to balance the electricity demand.
