Sagasolar Power (Private) Limited (Sagasolar), opened a utility scale solar power plant in Baruthankanda, Hambantota last week.
It has the capacity to produce 10 MW of power which will be supplied to the national grid. Sagasolar, a subsidiary of the LOLC Group, is joint venture with Faber Capital Limited, which with LOLC has invested Rs. 2.6 billion on this project.
The project has been launched in support of Sri Lanka’s National Energy policy, which focuses on switching from fossil fuel to renewable resources to produce electricity. Sri Lanka’s renewable energy journey began with hydro power, supplemented by wind power. This project to generate electricity through solar power, is arguably the most abundant and sustainable energy resource in the country.
The 10 MW solar plant, has been built on 45 acres of land within the Energy Development Area declared by Gazette Notice 1720/5 dated August 23, 2011 under the Sri Lanka Sustainable Energy Authority Act.
It is over seven times the size of the largest solar project in Sri Lanka at present; which is the 1.3 MW pilot project owned and operated by the Sustainable Energy Authority, in Hambantota.
Hambantota has one of the highest levels of Annual Global Horizontal Irradiation (GHI) in Sri Lanka. After energizing, the project will supply approximately 20 GWh, which will be sufficient to provide the annual electricity needs of approximately 15,000 typical Sri Lankan homes. The project will also reduce carbon dioxide emissions from power generation in the national electricity system by up to 11,000 tonnes per year. Faber Capital Limited is a boutique investment bank which specializes in the financing and implementation of renewable energy projects in Asia, Africa and the Middle East. Managing Director of Faber Capital, Dilshan Hettiaratchi said, “We at Faber Capital invested in this landmark project over a year ago and combined the implementation and financing elements needed to complete the project.Minister of Power and Renewable Energy, Ranjith Siyambalapitiya said, “The government will encourage more private sector investment in the power sector and solar power generation is the key option.”