Unit 2 of the Lakvijaya Coal Power Plant in Norochcholai will be operational again by Thursday (13), following the completion of the ongoing technical repairs, the Ceylon Electricity Board (CEB) said yesterday (8).
CEB Spokesman Additional General Manager (Generation Division) Dhammika Navaratne said that until the Norochcholai plant became fully operational (all three units), it would manage the demand by using the existing CEB-owned thermal oil (diesel and naphtha) power plants.
According to Navaratne, the board has diesel stocks sufficient for five days and naphtha will need to be purchased on Monday (10).
“On Monday we will discuss the diesel situation. We expect a demand reduction this week due to the holidays, but we will be prepared to face any hike if needed. Therefore, sufficient stocks of diesel will be kept ready next week,” he added.
Commenting on the hydropower situation, Navaratne stressed that the hydro storage as of now was similar to the storage levels of last year. “There are showers experienced by hydropower catchment areas, but those showers are not noticeable,” he said.
As per the CEB statistics of Friday (7), a total of 30% of the current demand was fulfilled by hydropower while the coal contribution was at 25.2%. The thermal oil contribution from CEB-owned power plants to the national grid was 17.3% and IPP contribution was 14.9%.
However, when contacted, CEB Chairman Nalinda Ilangakoon said the CEB was expecting early return of rain this month and with the Norochcholai plant returning to full operability, the CEB planned to operate the coal-fired plant at full steam for a few months until the generators scheduled for maintenance were taken offline and shut down.
Source By themorning.lk
