Opposition Leader Sajith Premadasa on Thursday alleged that several recent coal shipments imported for the Lakvijaya Coal Power Plant were substandard, resulting in major financial losses and higher electricity generation costs.
He made these remarks during a meeting of the Parliament of Sri Lanka Sectoral Oversight Committee on Infrastructure and Strategic Development, stating that earlier concerns raised in Parliament had not received satisfactory explanations from authorities.
Citing official data presented to the committee, Premadasa claimed the second coal shipment caused losses of Rs. 288.5 million, of which only Rs. 135.1 million was recoverable. He further said losses from the third shipment exceeded Rs. 1 billion with only Rs. 150 million recoverable, while the fourth shipment resulted in losses of Rs. 865 million, with Rs. 107 million expected to be recovered.
He alleged that poor-quality coal had forced power producers to use larger quantities to generate electricity, thereby increasing production costs and placing an additional burden on consumers through higher electricity tariffs.
Senior representatives from the Ceylon Electricity Board, the Public Utilities Commission of Sri Lanka, and the Lanka Coal Company were summoned before the committee as discussions focused on procurement standards, coal quality concerns, and oversight within the energy sector.
