All approvals are in place to invite bids to establish a 50 MW wind power plant on Mannar Island on a Build, Own, Operate (BOO) basis by Independent Power Producers (IPPs), according to the Power and Energy Ministry.
The proposed power plant will be an extension to the Mannar Wind Park developed by the Ceylon Electricity Board (CEB). Once completed, agreements will be signed between the CEB and the selected IPPs for the construction of the power plant, The Sunday Morning learns.
Cabinet has granted approval to the proposal presented by the Minister of Power and Energy to establish a wind power station on Mannar Island. The station will operate on a BOO basis, with private sector investors selected through a competitive process for an operational period of 20 years.
Initially, during a Cabinet meeting on 26 October 2020, the implementation of the project was approved to boost electricity generation by installing six additional turbines, utilising $ 47 million in funds from the Asian Development Bank (ADB). However, the utilisation of ADB funds is contingent on the successful implementation of the Government’s foreign debt restructuring programme.
As per the CEB’s Long-Term Generation Expansion Plan (LTGEP) for 2023-2042, the 50 MW power plant is scheduled to commence operations in 2024. With the extension of the Mannar wind power plant by 50 MW, the capacity enhancement will increase the total capacity of the power plant to 150 MW.
However, Power and Energy Ministry Secretary Sulakshana Jayawardena said: “The Government will not need to invest finances in the construction of the power plant as it will be a BOO basis project. The investors can invest their funds and construct the power plant and then agreements similar to IPPs will be signed.”
He explained that the ministry was currently in the final stage of calling tenders. “An open competitive bidding process will be followed,” the Secretary said.
As stated in the LTGEP, discussions were underway to have another phase of a 100 MW wind power plant developed in the Silavathurai area by the CEB. Furthermore, the CEB has called for bids for a 60 MW wind power development from the private sector, with three projects already committed to being developed in Trincomalee (10 MW), Madampe (10 MW), and Mannar (15 MW), expected between 2023 to 2024.
The Mannar Wind Park, erected on the southern coastal belt of Mannar Island, is the first large-scale wind power project developed in Sri Lanka. During the first stage, 103.5 MW of wind power was developed. This plant has 30 windmills, each having a 3.45 MW capacity, and it is designed with a semi-dispatchable model.