Industrialists fear that they will have to be inanimate until 2012 when the Norochcholi coal-fired power plant is expected to start generating electricity. "If the new tariff structure of the Ceylon Electricity Board is implemented we will have to put up notices saying ‘thavakalikava wasa athe’ (temporarily closed) because authorities said that once Norochcholi is functional we will be given relief by way of reduced rates. But we cannot wait that long," said the Chairman of the Ceylon National Chamber of Industries (CNCI), A. K. Ratnarajah. He said that the new tariff structure will require industries to cough up almost Rs.9 billion by way of electricity charges to the CEB. "CEB’s problems are not our problems. Apart from their own lapses, the CEB is suffering today because of the lapses on the part of the policy makers and politicians," Ratnarajah added. Although he understood that the new tariff is designed to compel industries and others to use electricity more efficiently, Ratnarajah said that the CNCI is lobbying for the new tariff structure to be re-structured so that the industries can survive and be competitive in the region and the rest of the world. "There are other areas we could focus on like transmission loss which is at 16 percent of the electricity produced, but we do not want to do that. We want to push for more competitive rates," he said, adding that the CNCI had to remain focused so as not to lose track of the real issue affecting the industry sector. |
