New Electricity Act being implemented

Sector players should comply with provisions:

Ramani Kangaraarachchi

The new Electricity Act approved by Parliament is being implemented and all electricity sector players should follow the provisions under the Act as the Government wants electricity to be provided to all citizens of Sri Lanka at an affordable price with a high degree of reliability, said Minister of Power and Energy W.D.J. Seneviratne.

He was addressing the annual sessions of the Sri Lanka Energy Managers Association (SLEMA) at the Taj Samudra Hotel in Colombo on Friday.

He said that the Government’s policy on electricity industry regulations is very clear and it would examine how best the Government could use the new regulatory structure to develop the electricity industry.

As the first step of the implementation the Public Utilities Commission (PUC) has issued licences to the Ceylon Electricity Board (CEB) for several businesses it deals with. The PUC will regulate not only the CEB but also all other industry players, to ensure that the industry moves in the correct direction.

The PUC will implement the Government’s policy in all aspects of its operations, and ensure fairness to all, he said.

Seneviratne said that the PUC should focus on four areas of work, to reach the objectives namely, ensure professional planning and timely implementation of plans, ensure fair and cost effective pricing of electricity, improve customer service and ensure supply quality and reliability to the best international standards, and transparency in all business operations.

The Minister said that the customer should be the number one priority in PUC’s work as many of them have many grievances most of which can be readily addressed. He said that even the CEB, LECO, and nearly one- hundred private power developers too have problems. They too have a right to engage in the legitimate business electricity production and delivery. The PUC should look into all these aspects and come up with a professional approach that reflects fairness and equality, he said.

SLEMA conducted its annual sessions to coincide with its 25th anniversary. The theme was “Implementing Regulatory Reforms in the Energy Sector”.