Colombo, Oct 25 (NIA) – The Public Utilities Commission of Sri Lanka (PUCSL), on Tuesday, said it had appointed a high-profiled three member committee to carry out an independent probe into the recent break down at the Lakvijaya coal power plant in Norochcholai.
The breakdown led to partial islandwide power cuts for over 3 days.
“As the Electricity Regulator, PUCSL is obliged to ensure that a coordinated, efficient and economical system of electricity supply is provided and maintained throughout Sri Lanka at all times,” PUCSL said in a statement.
“Unexpected major failures in the generation plants have a significant negative impact on continuity of the supply.”
The Investigation Team is required to investigate relevant technical and non-technical evidence, information, data that requires ascertaining the causes of the failure and examine the causes for the failure.
It will also analyze whether the failure could have been prevented and make recommendations and advices to prevent similar failures in future.
Sri Lanka’s Power and Energy Ministry last week said that the recent partial power cuts imposed islandwide was a result of a breakdown in a critical transmission line in the National Grid and not due to a malfunction in the Norochcholai coal power plant.
The Ministry said that a channel used to transfer power had malfunctioned which resulted in an emergency shutdown of the Norochcholai Coal Power Plant.
The plant, located in the outskirts of the capital, is Sri Lanka’s only coal-fired power plant which supplies almost 50 percent of the power demand of the country.
According to experts in the electricity sector, the breakdown in the transmission line in the National Grid, highlighted the urgency to upgrade Sri Lanka’s National Grid.
The Ministry also rejected reports blaming the Norochcholai Power Plant for malfunctioning which led to partial power cuts.
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