Power and Energy Minister Kanchana Wijesekera said that if a candle worth 70 rupees was used at the time of power outages, the cost of the candle would be 2100 rupees per month, and today the amount to be spent by continuously receiving electricity under the minimum tariff category is 1300 rupees.
The minister said this while giving answers to the questions asked by opposition leader Sajith Premadasa in Parliament.
He also mentioned that they pointed out that there should be a change in the tariffs levied to provide the power supply continuously, and the supply of power has been restored without a break.
“Last year, the power outages lasted for about 16 hours a day… After that, it was reduced to two and a half hours. At that time, the agitation was for a continuous supply of electricity. The leader of the opposition asked us how the tourism industry would develop if the electricity was interrupted. At that time, they protested by holding torches and demanding continuous electricity supply, and even today, when electricity is supplied without a break, they are doing the same thing, he said.
Commenting further, he said that he also believes that the generation plans should be changed and that the generation plans up to 2042 has now been submitted to Parliament.
He said that diesel, naphtha, and fuel oil plants cost a lot, and these costs should be reduced. He also pointed out that if the new generation plan is implemented properly, they could reduce the tariffs by July.
