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Resus Energy connects 6 MW solar power plant to national grid

31 May 2022

Further expanding its portfolio, Resus Energy PLC, a renewable-energy company, recently connected a 6 megawatt (MW) ground-mounted solar photovoltaic (PV) station to the national grid. Located in Rideemaliyadda, and connected to the Mahiyanganaya grid substation, the development rights of these projects were secured under the Government’s Soorya Balasangramaya tender floated to procure 90 x 1 MW Solar PV projects.  Built at a cost of over Rs. 1 billion with state-of-the-art equipment encompassing tier-1 solar PV panels, inverters, and other auxiliary equipment, the power station is expected to generate about 9 million units of electricity (9 GWh) annually. This is Resus Energy’s second solar PV site. Now, together with its first site in Siyambalanduwa, Resus supplies 8 MW of solar power to the national grid.  Resus Energy Managing Director Kishan Nanayakkara said: “This country is paying dearly because of the renewable energy shortage. We are having blackouts impacting people’s lives and business and at the same time idling thermal plants due to fuel shortage. That’s ironic. Our economy is pushed to a perilous state for having to pay astronomical prices for fuel to even have a limited operation of our thermal plants.  “Resus Energy’s newly connected solar PV station gives a huge economic benefit to the nation, supplying electricity at about Rs. 15 a unit for the next 20 years, which is below the Ceylon Electricity Board’s (CEB) current average selling price, enabling it to make a profit from each unit. Comparatively, the fuel cost of the Puttalam Coal Plant, the cheapest thermal plant, alone is over two-and-a-half times our unit cost and is over six times in the case of diesel and furnace oil plants.”  Navigating through long lockdown periods, the project was badly affected by hyperinflation and scarcity of construction and other input materials; transportation challenges; forex crisis leading to inability to open letters of credit (LC); and making supplier settlements. Yet, Resus delivered the project on time keeping its responsibility and promise to the nation to support its crusade to expand renewable energy. With this one, Resus now operates 11 utility-scale grid-connected power stations with an aggregate capacity of about 24 MW and estimated annual energy generation of over 60 GWh.  “Sri Lanka being a signatory to the 2015 Paris Agreement on climate change is obligated to the implementation of  Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) in which SDG 7 is the provision of clean and affordable energy. Through our Nationally Determined Contributions (NDC) we have also pledged to reduce emissions by 30%, with 20% to come from the energy sector. Renewable energy is a huge element in meeting our promise to the world made through the Paris Accord and NDCs,” Nanayakkara further said.


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