The Special Presidential Commission of Inquiry probing coal procurement will begin recording witness statements next week, moving the high-level inquiry into its operational phase, The Island reported on Sunday.
The Commission has received 28 complaints relating to coal procurement activities so far. Officials of the Lanka Coal Company (Pvt) Ltd, the Lakvijaya Power Plant and the Ministry of Energy will be among the first questioned. Evidence recording into the procurement process itself is also expected to begin shortly as part of the Commission’s wider investigation.
Separately, Committee on Public Enterprises (COPE) Chairman Dr. Nishantha Samaraweera said the parliamentary watchdog’s report on coal procurement will be tabled in the House next month. He said officials of Lanka Coal Company and administrators from Lakvijaya were among those summoned during the COPE inquiry, and that the committee had relied on several Auditor General reports as the basis of its investigations. Any matters flagged for further criminal action would be referred to the Criminal Investigation Department and to the Commission to Investigate Allegations of Bribery or Corruption, he added.
The Special Presidential Commission is chaired by Supreme Court Justice Gihan Kulatunga, with Court of Appeal Judge Adithya Patabendige and High Court Judge Sanjeewa Somaratne as members. It was established in April under a gazette covering all coal imports since 2009.
The procedural ramp-up coincides with the Special Commission’s earlier deadline for public submissions and follows a detailed dossier filed last week by SJB MP Dayasiri Jayasekera alleging cartel collusion and sanctions-related risks in the ongoing 2026/27 Lakvijaya coal tender.
Source: Coal procurement probe: Statements to begin next week — The Island, May 31.
