Colombo, August 29 (Daily Mirror) - The first payment towards the implementation of the Hybrid Power Projects on three islands off Jaffna was handed over to Secretary, Minister of Power and Energy Sulakshana Jayawardena and Chairman of Sri Lanka Sustainable Energy Authority (SLSEA) Ranjith Sepala by the High Commissioner of India to Sri Lanka Santosh Jha.

A Memorandum of Understanding for the implementation of the hybrid renewable energy projects on the Delft, Nainativu and Analaitivu islands was signed between the Government of the Republic of India and the Government of the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka in March 2022, and subsequently, the contract for the project implementation was signed by the SLSEA with M/s. U Solar Clean Energy Solutions Pvt. Ltd. on 01 March 2024.

The project, aimed at addressing the energy needs of the people of the three islands which are not connected to the national grid, will combine various forms of energy including both solar and wind, towards optimizing capacities.

Initial work has commenced at the three sites, and the project is scheduled to be completed by early March 2025 and handed over by late April 2025.

The project is being implemented under a grant assistance of USD 11 million from the Government of India and reaffirms India’s commitment to bilateral cooperation in the energy sector, as well as the human-centric nature of India’s development partnership initiatives in Sri Lanka.