There is no disruption to the electricity supply despite reduced coal-fired generation, because sufficient hydropower is currently being produced, the Ministry of Energy has said.
Energy Minister Anura Karunathilaka said coal stocks had declined, prompting authorities to limit generation at the Norochcholai Coal Power Plant, Ada Derana reported.
Two coal shipments are expected shortly. The first vessel is scheduled to arrive on Friday (4) and the second on 12 September. Coal-fired generation would return to normal once both cargoes are unloaded, the minister said.
He stressed there is currently no need for power cuts and urged the public not to be unnecessarily concerned.
A contrary claim
Ada Derana also carried a claim by Pubudu Jagoda, Education Secretary of the Frontline Socialist Party, on the coal stock shortage. The report does not set out the substance of his allegation beyond attributing it to him, and the ministry’s account and his are presented side by side rather than reconciled.
Why hydropower is available
The minister’s assurance rests on hydro generation being unusually strong at a time when the country’s reservoirs have been under drought stress. That combination is worth noting: irrigation releases in Polonnaruwa were halted at the end of August under El Niño conditions, and 612 tanks in Anuradhapura fell below five per cent capacity.
Hydropower reservoirs in the central highlands are managed separately from the dry-zone irrigation tanks, and Ada Derana did not publish reservoir levels or a hydro share of generation. A cabinet sub-committee met on Wednesday to consider El Niño-related job losses, the fourth such meeting.
Not reported
Ada Derana did not say why coal stocks fell, whether the shipments were delayed or simply scheduled, how many days of stock remain, how much generating capacity at Norochcholai has been taken offline, or what proportion of demand hydropower is currently meeting. No other verified newsroom had carried the minister’s remarks at the time of writing.
