The Public Utilities Commission of Sri Lanka has decided to keep electricity tariffs unchanged for the third quarter of 2026, despite a rise in generation costs.
The regulator said in a statement that the decision followed a review of cost estimates submitted by the National System Operator Company.
The increase in electricity supply costs was limited to 0.3 per cent, or Rs. 417 million, which the commission said did not warrant a revision. The tariff structure applied in the second quarter will therefore continue.
The numbers behind the decision
The PUCSL said a revenue surplus of Rs. 30,118 million recorded in the first quarter has been carried forward. That figure included additional coal-related generation costs that were later excluded from tariffs, leaving a remaining balance of Rs. 26,753 million.
Added to the estimated electricity supply cost of Rs. 159,274 million for the third quarter, that brings the projected total cost to Rs. 186,027 million.
In effect, the carried-forward surplus absorbs the higher generation costs, allowing rates to hold without the utility running a shortfall on the quarter.
Energy prices holding
The decision holds consumer bills flat through a period in which the government has faced repeated questions over energy pricing.
Fuel prices were also left unchanged for August, with the Ceylon Petroleum Corporation absorbing losses on diesel rather than passing them to motorists. CPC Chairman Shantha Rajakaruna has said the corporation is losing between Rs. 63 and Rs. 70 on every litre of diesel sold.
Holding both electricity and fuel rates steady keeps two of the largest administered prices in the economy fixed for the quarter, at a time when Colombo inflation reached 7.3% in July.
