The National System Operator (Pvt.) Ltd. (NSO) has asked the Public Utilities Commission of Sri Lanka for a further 15% electricity tariff increase for the second quarter of 2026, on top of the roughly 10% hike that already took effect on April 1.
The NSO — one of the state-owned successor companies created after the Ceylon Electricity Board was restructured — submitted its revised generation cost forecast to PUCSL on 6 April, saying the update reflects a fresh dispatch schedule and the latest fuel prices. The filing comes as elevated global oil prices, reduced hydropower output and continued reliance on thermal generation squeeze the system cost base.
If approved in full, domestic and commercial consumers would face a cumulative Q2 hike of roughly 25%, layered on top of increases already applied earlier this year. The request has not yet been approved by PUCSL, which must assess the numbers before taking any decision.
Consumers have already absorbed the first tranche. Electricity tariffs rose from April 1 after PUCSL granted around a 10% increase following a CEB request for a 13.56% revision for the April–June quarter.
The government has separately announced Rs. 15 billion in relief for low-consumption households using under 90 units as part of its Middle East crisis relief package, unveiled by President Anura Kumara Dissanayake in Parliament on Monday.
The resubmission adds fresh political pressure ahead of the no-confidence motion against Energy Minister Kumara Jayakody scheduled for April 10, and sits alongside worsening hydropower conditions as Castlereigh and Maussakelle reservoir levels fall.
