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Electricity output dropped last year due to pandemic

The electricity generation for 2020 had been forecast as 18,542 GWh as per the draft Long-Term Generation Expansion Plan of CEB for the period 2020-2039, but only 16,304 GWh of electricity was generated, as per the Annual Performance Report – 2020 of the Ministry of Power.
This was mainly due to the COVID-19 outbreak, the ministry has said. Meanwhile, in 2020, 39%, 24% and 26% of energy requirements were generated from coal, hydro sources (Without Mini hydro) and thermal oil respectively. The share of Non-Conventional Renewable Energy (NCRE) sources was 11%.
The Ministry says that in 2019, a low-interest loan scheme was introduced, with the support of a USD 50 million loan from the ADB for domestic, industrial, and commercial entities to establish solar rooftop systems up to 50kW. At the end of 2020, a total of 337 MW of solar rooftops were connected to the national grid through 30,149 systems across the country.
Meanwhile, the total number of electricity consumers in 2020 was 7,216,933. 57,207 new connections were provided with electricity in 2020. 6,229,628 were domestic consumers, 69,088 were industries and 44,361 were religious establishments.
The Ministry says that in recent years the power sector has been producing increasing amounts of greenhouse gases due to the use of petroleum-based fuel. Given that Sri Lanka has promised to reduce CO2 emissions in the power sector, increasing the share of renewables is a must, it has said.
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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.
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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.
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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.
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