Ceylon electricity board

COMPANY PROFILE

2015

Ceylon Electricity Board

www.ceb.lk | +94 112 324 471

Enriching life through power Editorial: Rosie DeWinter

Standing as the largest electricity utility in Sri Lanka, Ceylon Electricity Board controls all major functions of electricity generation, transmission, distribution and retailing throughout the country. With further power projects in the pipeline, Total World Energy speaks to General Manager, Chandrasiri Wickramasekara who explains how the Board is channelling renewable energy and encouraging customers to conserve more energy…

Established as a Board in 1969, Ceylon Electricity Board (CEB) initially started developing its grid with hydro-electric power during the 1950’s. Alongside the development of its first hydro power plant, CEB began to establish small thermal power plants.

By the mid-1980’s, CEB began to develop and operate heavy fuel thermal power plants whilst running heavy fuel power

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plants, its gas turbines were running on diesel until the early 2000’s but very sparingly now.

Speaking to newly appointed General Manager, Chandrasiri W ickramasekara, he explains CEB soon started investing in the independent power producers of Sri Lanka.

“Until mid-1990, all the generation was owned by CEB but from then onwards, we started contracting and buying

power from independent power producers. They were using oil power plants and also, there were many small power producers who were using mini hydro plants. Today, we have over 200 small hydro power plants connected to our grid.

“Right now, we have close to 1000MW developed by independent power producers and in 2010, the first coal power plant was added to our

Ceylon Electricity Board system (300MW). Last year, we added another 600MW so right now we have 900MW of coal.

“So with all that capacity, we have close to 4,000MW store capacity – our transmission voltage is 132220Kv and generally covers the whole island,” explains W ickramasekara.

W ith generation owned and operated by CEB, W ickramasekara explains many of its independent power producers cover both thermal and mini hydro plants. Much of the distribution is also owned and operated by CEB – “We also have a subsidiary company called Lanka Electricity Company which is doing the distribution business in certain urban areas near Colombo in the Western and Southern coastal areas,” W ickramasekara adds.

Joining Ceylon Electricity

Board as a Junior Electrical Engineer in 1979, W ickramasekara explains that throughout his 36 years, his background has mostly been within power generation – “Prior to General Manager, I was Head of the Generation Division and more or less, I have always been associated with generation.”

ENERGY PROJECTS In September 2010, CEB began a joint venture with India’s National Thermal Power Corporation (NTPC) for a 500MW coal power plant – the Trincomalee Coal Power Project.

Operated by JV Company, the coal plant is located at Sampoor and involves the construction of a 220kV double circuit transmission line from Samput to Veyangoda via Habarana with new sub stations at Habarana and Veyangoda to transmit

power to load centres. Sections of the line between Sampur and Habarana will be constructed as a 400kV line but operate initially on 220kV. The project will also include the construction of a coal unloading jetty at Sampoor.

Adding 600MW of coal last year, W ickramasekara explains that most of the future generation that has been planned is in coal plants: “So this 500MW coal power plant which will implemented via a joint venture company, 50/50 jointly owned by CEB and India’s National Thermal Power Corporation (NTPC) and will be the next major project in the pipeline.”

W ickramasekara adds that CEB recently applied for the Environment Impact Assessment approval for this project which it expects to be obtained by April, with a view to complete the plant by 2019.

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“We have planned several transmission network developments which include lines and substations with a new 220kV line to strengthen the Southern part of the island and 132kV line to Mannar (which will be upgraded to 220kV),” explains W ickramasekara.

“CEB has identified good wind potential in Mannar, in the North West of the country. The wind potential is 375MW so we have already ordered the contract for the line and we are now trying to implement first phase of wind in that region, so the need for the expansion to cater for that also.”

Speaking of the country’s hydro-power projects and W ickramasekara explains that much of the hydro potential

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has now been explored and developed – “So what’s left are those small ones which we call mini and micro hydro power plants of capacity less than 1.5MW.” “There are two projects now under construction, but they are relatively small. We don’t have much hydro power potential left for development. We have been investigating hydro pump storage – which we plan to come in around 2023-2024 but that is the latest status as far as hydro power is concerned.”

HELPING TO CONSERVE ENERGY For an energy company, it is not always an easy task to help and encourage customers to be more sustainable in their

consumption of energy. Ceylon Electricity Board implore – ‘Switch off one light, save it for our children. We are committed to help our valued customers to use energy efficiently, save more money and improve our environment for a better future.’

W ickramasekara explains that CEB has an energy program in place to help and inform customers on the best methods to conserve energy and educate them on the financial benefits of doing so.

“We educate customers in many ways: mass media, seminars and educating school children. From time to time we also do competitions – for example, we had a scheme for customers that if they reduced their bill by 20%, they stood

Ceylon Electricity Board the chance to eliminate their electricity bill for that month, so this helps to encourage our customers to conserve energy.

“We have also introduced energy efficient equipment such as CFL lighting and we do energy ratings for these, especially the bulbs. “ T h e re ’s a d e d i c a t e d institution under the Power and Energy Ministry called The Sustainable Energy A u t h o r i t y. T h e S u s t a i n a b l e Energy Authority is specifically established to boost re n e w a b l e s , e s p e c i a l l y t h e n o n - c o n v e n t i o n a l re n e w a b l e s .

So we have a lot of e n c o u r a g e m e n t a n d r i g h t n o w, w e h a v e a g o o d t a r i ff s o i t i s a good incentive for the private developers. “ We h a v e a p o s i t i v e a p p ro a c h t o g re e n e n e r g y,

“We have a positive approach to green energy, like wind and hydro, thermal and biogas. So there is a lot of encouragement from the government to go for greener and cleaner energy”

l i k e w i n d , h y d ro , s o l a r a n d b i o m a s s . S o t h e re i s a l o t o f e n c o u r a g e m e n t f ro m t h e g o v e r n m e n t t o g o f o r g re e n e r a n d c l e a n e r e n e r g y, ” e x p l a i n s Wickramasekara.

CEB has also implemented Net Metering, a billing m e c h a n i s m t h a t c re d i t s s o l a r energy system customers for the electricity they add to t h e g r i d , re c e i v i n g c re d i t f o r excess energy which can be used over the coming months.

W ith so many cleaner and greener incentives now in place for its customers and numerous renewable projects underway and nearing completion, Ceylon Electricity Board looks set to continue its long legacy of supplying energy to the people of Sri Lanka for many years to come

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