The Sectoral Oversight Committee on Alleviating the Impact of the Economic Crisis says existing electricity prices can be reduced by about 33%.
The Parliamentary committee further said that the price of electricity should be reduced by at least 20% in the year 2024 so that the Ceylon Electricity Board (CEB) will not suffer any loss.
According to a Parliament statement, the Sectoral Oversight Committee issued the recommendations to the Public Utilities Commission of Sri Lanka (PUCSL), following an analytical review of the figures presented by the CEB, PUCSL, etc. and taking into consideration all other factors affecting the price of electricity, including considering the opinion given by experts.
Accordingly, the officials of the Public Utilities Commission informed the Committee that by the end of this month, they can submit the necessary recommendations to reduce the electricity bill.
This matter was discussed when the Sectoral Oversight Committee on Alleviating the Impact of the Economic Crisis met in Parliament recently (Feb 22) under the chairmanship of MP Gamini Waleboda.
Ministry of Industry, Ministry of Finance, Central Bank of Sri Lanka, Public Utilities Commission, Industry Development Board, Enterprise Development Authority, Department of Population and Statistics, Department of Inland Revenue and officials of the government institutions, including Micro, Small and Medium Scale Industries Board and a group of industrialists had also been called before the Committee.
The Committee gave several directives to the relevant institutions and officials to identify the micro, small and medium-scale industries that are directly affected by the economic crisis and to activate the local economy and increase the foreign exchange earnings by reviving the industry sector.
Accordingly, the Committee pointed out that due to the increase in electricity bills, the number of electricity connection cuts reported across the island has exceeded …read more
Source:: News Wire