The Government will not impose power cuts in 2009 because the Energy Conservation Program implemented by the Power and Energy Ministry has been able to control 50 per cent of electricity wastage.

Although after the completion of Kukulagama project since 2002 no additional MW had been added to the National Grid and as a result a power shortage could be seen. Because of the Power and Energy Ministry’s effective awareness programs launched in the past few years, the CEB has been able to control 50 per cent of electricity, Power and Energy Minister W.D.J.Seneviratne told an Energy Conservation Workshop held in Ratnapura recently.

Minister Seneviratne addressing the gathering said that although electricity consumption had been limited to a handful of persons in the past, the CEB had been able to provide electricity to 83 per cent consumers today. Within the next 10 years the CEB would be able to supply electricity to the remaining 17 per cent.

He pointed out that during the past few years the demand for electricity was so high that the country had to face a power crisis because the CEB had to depend on 65 per cent power generation on diesel. A number of advanced countries had been using coal-power electricity generation plants some sections of the society had launched protest marches against the introduction of coal power plants in Sri Lanka.

Minister Seneviratne said that the construction of the Norocholai electricity generation plant was proposed in 1988 but the construction commenced in 2007. It would be completed in 2010. Had the Norocholai plant been constructed in 1988, Sri Lanka would not have experienced power crisis.

He added that the spiraling cost of fuel prices in the World Market had forced the Government to increase electricity charges. The CEB had been purchasing one unit of electricity from power generation plants from Rs.20 to Rs.52 and selling to consumers at Rs. 14.50 per one unit. The CEB had incurred Rs.41 billion loss in the last year. Around 29 million units were in demand for a day in Sri Lanka.

Minister Seneviratne outlined that it was the duty of electricity consumers to save electricity from waste. Some houses, shopping complexes and industrial complexes had been detected to be wasting electricity and relevant legislation would be enacted to deal with them soon. In the midst of several problems affecting the power sector the Government had been able to supply electricity round-the-clock to consumers.

He said that the Energy Conservation Program launched targeting 2008 and 2009 had been able to reduce electricity demand by 4 per cent annually, but the demand was 8 per cent in 2007 and previous years. People had realized the importance of electricity rationalization and had practiced to do so in order to avert looming power crisis.