The National System Operator (Pvt) Ltd has submitted a revised electricity cost estimate to the Public Utilities Commission of Sri Lanka (PUCSL), opening the door for a fresh increase in power tariffs for the second quarter of 2026.
The NSO — one of the state-owned successor companies created out of the Ceylon Electricity Board’s restructuring — said the revised estimate reflects the recent fuel price increase. CPC raised petrol, diesel and kerosene prices earlier this month after global crude markets stayed elevated through the Iran-Hormuz crisis, pushing thermal generation costs higher.
The filing is the second cost revision NSO has submitted for Q2. In early April it had already asked PUCSL for a further 15% Q2 hike on top of the roughly 10% increase that took effect on April 1. That earlier resubmission cited revised dispatch and fuel prices and would have brought the cumulative Q2 increase to about 25% if approved in full.
The latest filing has not yet been published, and Ada Derana did not provide a percentage figure. PUCSL must independently assess the cost forecast before deciding whether to authorise a tariff change.
The system operator’s repeated revisions reflect the fuel-pricing pass-through pressure that the new automatic adjustment mechanism is designed to absorb. They also come against the backdrop of reduced hydropower output at Castlereigh and Maussakelle reservoirs, which deepen reliance on costlier thermal plants.
Source: Ada Derana.
