Two ministers push for coal power, two big projects proposed
The Government may roll back its green energy policy if it accepts a proposal by two ministers to set up two coal power plants in Trincomalee and Norochcholai.
A Cabinet proposal seeking approval for the construction of the two power plants is due to be resubmitted on Tuesday.
Significantly, the new coal power plant in Norochcholai is due to come up in the same vicinity as the Lakvijaya Coal Power Plant, which is currently being investigated for environmental pollution.
The new coal power plants would generate 1,200 Megawatts (MW) of electricity for the national grid. This, however, runs counter to Government policy regarding the country’s energy mix and the longterm power generation plan approved by the Public Utilities Commission of Sri Lanka ( PUCSL), the power sector regulator.
A Joint Cabinet Memorandum, dated November 23, submitted by Special Assignments Minister Sarath Amunugama and Power and Renewable Energy Minister Ranjith Siyambalapitiya, outlines a series of proposals regarding the composition of electricity generation in the country.
Among these is a proposal to set up two “clean coal” power plants. Accordingly, it has been proposed to establish a 600MW clean coal based high efficient coal power plant in the Foul Point area in Trincomalee “with the minimum environmental damage,” and another such power plant in Norochcholai in the same vicinity as the Lakvijaya Coal Power Plant.
A Cabinet Memorandum to the effect states that 600 acres of land in the Foul Point area and 500 acres in Norochcholai need to be set aside for the construction of the two plants. Buffer zones will also be established to cover all clean power plants. This is in the acceptance that forestation is essential to reduce the carbon footprint in sequestering carbon emissions to the environment in the generation of electricity using coal, it adds.
No mention has been made regarding how much the plants might cost.
The Memorandum was submitted to the Cabinet last week, but several ministers are learned to have expressed reservations regarding the proposed coal power plants. As such, the paper was circulated among the Cabinet, with ministers being instructed to study the matter and submit their views before the next ministerial meeting.
The proposal is controversial on several grounds. Firstly, it comes after the Government scrapped plans to build a 500MW coal power plant in Sampur in September, 2016 due to strong opposition f rom environmentalists. Cabinet Spokesman Rajitha Senaratne subsequently told journalists that the Government had decided not to construct any new coal power plants due to the harm they cause to the environment.
It also comes amid an ongoing dispute between the Ceylon Electricity Board ( CEB) and the PUCSL regarding the long term- power generation plan approved by the latter. The Least Cost Long Term Generation Expansion Plan ( LCLTGEP) 2018-2037 approved by the regulator in July, this year does not contain coal power plants. The CEB has vehemently objected to the PUCSL’s plan, accusing the regulator of going beyond its mandate in introducing amendments to the plan. The dispute even led to the CEB to seek the opinion of the Attorney General.
In August, however, the Cabinet Committee on Economic Management (CCEM) directed the CEB to implement the PUCSL approved plan until the Cabinet decided on the policy on energy mix most suitable for Sri Lanka after public consultation. This is outlined in a letter dated August 11, 2017 and addressed to the PUCSL by the Prime Minister's Secretary. No attempts though, had been made since then to seek the public’s views.
The target, as set out in the document presented by the two Ministers, is to meet 50% of the country’s overall energy requirement using large hydro power plants and Non Conventional Renewable Energy (NCRE) sources by 2030, considering renewable energy development in the country as a policy. It also envisages to meet 1/3 of the overall electricity requirement by 2030 ( around 2500MW) using NCREs.
Ministers Amunugama and Siyambalapitiya have proposed to maintain 2/ 3 of the electricity generation capacity of the country using firm energy sources such as petroleum fuels like natural gas, coal and large hydro resources “to ensure energy security in the country.”
The document further proposes to maintain firm energy capacity as 30% from natural gas, 30% from coal, 25% from hydro and 15% from furnace oil (a byproduct of refineries) and NCREs.
The strategy is to plan future power plants with the vision of making Sri Lanka self-sufficient in electricity by 2050. With the average lifespan of coal power plants being about 40 years, sources say the goal would be difficult to meet, as even if such a plant is established in 2025, it would be operating well beyond 2050.