News
Biomass power producer forced to shut due to CEB’s unpaid arrears

Company saves country USD 3 mn. Annually
by Ifham Nizam
An independent power supplier to Sri Lanka’s national grid whose supplies could annually save the country Rs 450 Million in energy costs and USD 3 million in foreign exchange has shut down because of huge unpaid arrears owed to it by the Ceylon Electricity Board and because of the very large recent increases in the cost of wood fuel.
Mirigama Dendro Power (MDP) is a 4 MW biomass plant which provides 3.8 MW of power to Sri Lanka’s national grid annually.
“CEB has not paid us from December last year and owes us Rs 194 million” said MDP Chairman Dr. Romesh Bandaranaike.
The price of fuelwood used by the Plant has increased by over 75% because of the recent exchange rate changes and the price increases in diesel, which has prompted many industries to change the fuel used by their boilers, which supply process steam, from diesel to wood.
“Raw wood has increased from Rs 4/kg. to more than Rs 7/kg and wood chips from Rs 7/kg to over Rs 11/kg. At these prices, it is not economical to run the plant. It will only be viable if there is a substantial increase in what we are paid for the energy we supply to the CEB,” Bandaranaike said.
“We need a minimum increase of Rs 7-8 per kWh from the present Rs 26.65 we are paid if we are to meet our costs and service our bank loans.”
He adds: “The tariff formula in our agreement with the CEB is “backward looking with five year past averages.” It was never designed to handle situations like the present with massive inflation.
The Rs 34-35 per kWh that Dr. Bandaranaike has requested is still substantially lower than what it costs the CEB to generate the same energy, which is Rs 41 per kWh using coal and over Rs 70 per kWh using diesel according to him. The plant can generate 28,000,000 kWh annually.
The savings to the CEB by purchasing power from the plant at Rs 34/kWh rather than generating the power itself at an average cost of Rs 50 per kWh would be Rs. 448 million per year.
Since the plant uses local fuel rather than imported coal or diesel, the foreign exchange savings would be in excess of USD three million, if the average fuel cost per kWh for the CEB’s plants whose power will be replaced is Rs 40.
“We owe the banks Rs 610 million in project loans and Rs 100 million in overdrafts. The collateral for these loans is the plant assets. We have asked the banks to take over our plant because we cannot operate it any more,” Bandaranaike said.
“The shareholders are resigned to losing their equity investment which was in excess of Rs 500 million. The banks will also lose their loan funds because no one will want to take over and run the Plant even if it is given at Rs 1.”
“It is a shame that a Plant which can generate power cheaper than the CEB’s coal power plants and also save USD three million in foreign exchange each year will have to be sold for scrap.”
He says that given his long experience with dealing with the CEB – he used to be the CEO of Sri Lanka’s largest small hydro power developer – there is little hope in approaching the CEB to request a revision in their present tariff and expedite payments.
Repeated requests to the CEB for payments of even a portion of their arrears have also fallen on deaf ears.
“They have so many other problems with power cuts due to fuel unavailability, consumer tariffs substantially lower than costs which result in massive losses, and so on. We are a tiny part of the solution and the CEB has no time for us.”
He says that MDP will make one last attempt to save their plant by going along with the banks to the Public Utility Commission and see if they can make “sanity prevail.”
Latest News
President and representatives of IMF discuss progress of EFF

A comprehensive discussion regarding the progress of the Extended Fund Facility (EFF) agreed with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) took place on Thursday (06) at the Presidential Secretariat, between President Anura Kumara Disanayake and the IMF delegation.
The current government has already reached a staff-level agreement with the IMF on the third review regarding the extended arrangement under the Extended Fund Facility (EFF) of USD3 billion.
The details of this review are expected to be presented to the International Monetary Fund’s Board of Directors by the end of this month. In this regard, discussions were held regarding the progress and the government’s involvement in continuing the program moving forward.
Once the approval is granted by the IMF Executive Board, Sri Lanka is expected to release the fourth tranche of the extended loan, amounting to 333 million dollars.
The discussion was also attended by IMF Executive Director Dr. Krishnamurthy Subramanian, Alternate Executive Director Dr. P. K. G. Harischandra, Deputy Minister of Economic Development Dr. Anil Jayantha Fernando, Secretary to the President Dr. Nandika Sanath Kumanayake, Secretary to the Ministry of Finance Mahinda Siriwadana, and Governor of the Central Bank of Sri Lanka Dr. Nandalal Weerasinghe.
News
New Commanders of the Tri-Forces meet the President

The newly appointed Commander of the Tri-Forces met with Commander-in-Chief, President Anura Kumara Disanayake on Thursday (6th) afternoon at the Presidential Secretariat.
The meeting was attended by Lieutenant General Lasantha Rodrigo, the new Army Commander; Vice Admiral Kanchana Banagoda, the new Navy Commander and Air Marshal Vasu Bandu Edirisinghe, the new Air Force Commander.
Following tradition, the new commanders formally met with the President after assuming their duties. During the meeting, they also presented the President with a commemorative token.
News
Musk reveals ‘crazy waste’ of USAID funds in Sri Lanka

USD 7.9 mn spent on teaching Lankan journalists how to avoid “binary-gendered language”
USAID has spent $7.9 million to teach Sri Lankan journalists how to avoid “binary-gendered language”, Elon Musk who heads the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) said in a post on X on Thursday.
Musk called it a “Crazy waste of your tax money!”
Musk’s criticism came with a detailed breakdown of USAID’s spending across various countries, which he argued reflects misguided priorities. According to a document Musk shared, USAID has funded a range of projects globally, including $20 million for a new Sesame Street show in Iraq, $4.5 million to “combat disinformation” in Kazakhstan, and $6 million to transform digital spaces to reflect feminist democratic principles.
The list also included $1.5 million for art projects promoting the inclusion of people with disabilities and $2 million for sex changes and LGBT activism in Guatemala. $10 million worth of USAID-funded meals, allegedly ended up in the hands of an al-Qaeda-linked terrorist group, the document states.
Other USAID programmes include $25 million for Deloitte to promote green transportation in Georgia, $6 million for tourism development in Egypt, and $2.5 million to foster inclusion in Vietnam. The documents also pointed to $5 million awarded to EcoHealth Alliance, a group linked to bat virus research at the Wuhan lab, and $20 million for an organisation tied to what Musk described as a “key player” in the Russiagate impeachment inquiry.
Further funds were allocated for various LGBT-related initiatives worldwide, including $5.5 million for LGBT activism in Uganda, $6.3 million for men who have sex with men in South Africa, $3.9 million for LGBT causes in the western Balkans, and $6 million for advancing LGBT issues globally. Additionally, $2 million was allocated to promote LGBT equality through entrepreneurship in Latin America, while $1.5 million was designated for LGBT advocacy in Jamaica.
The data also highlighted spending closer to home, with $1.2 million going to help the African Methodist Episcopal Church Service and Development Agency in Washington, D.C., build a 440-seat auditorium. A further $1.3 million was provided to Arab and Jewish photographers, while $1.1 million supported an Armenian LGBT group.
Musk criticised other expenditures as well, including $3.9 million for artisanal gold mining in the Amazon and $500,000 aimed at solving sectarian violence in Israel just days before the October 7 Hamas attack.
Attention was also drawn to USAID’s $150 billion “whole-of-agency” climate strategy, which outlines efforts to build an “equitable world” while pursuing net-zero greenhouse gas emissions.
-
News6 days ago
New Bangalore-Jaffna flights in the works
-
News4 days ago
CID questions top official over releasing of 323 containers
-
News6 days ago
Cardinal says ‘dark forces’ behind Easter bombs will soon be exposed
-
News6 days ago
HRCL reports on Rohingya asylum seekers
-
Features5 days ago
A singular modern Lankan mentor – Part II
-
Features5 days ago
Bharath Rang Mahothsav Parallel Festival in Colombo
-
News6 days ago
Ishadi Amanda makes history as First Runner-Up at 40th Mrs. World Pageant
-
Business7 days ago
Dialog partners with EcoMatcher to launch transparent, tech-driven tree planting in Sri Lanka