The Norochcholai coal power plant will stay off the national grid for several days after an islandwide power outage on Saturday, the National System Operator (NSO) said.
The NSO said in a statement that the plant was shut down under standard safety procedures after the incident. It will not be reconnected until the necessary procedures are complete.
The loss of the plant removes 810 megawatts of generating capacity from the system. The NSO said this is expected to put additional pressure on the electricity supply, and that measures would be taken to manage distribution and keep disruption to consumers to a minimum over the coming days.
The operator said continued rainy weather would allow hydropower stations to generate at maximum levels, and that a projected fall in electricity demand would ease pressure on the system.
NSO Chairman Pradeep Priyadarshana said a formal investigation would examine the failure. A report will go to the Public Utilities Commission of Sri Lanka (PUCSL) and the relevant ministry within a month. The NSO has also begun an internal investigation to establish the exact cause and the sequence of events that led to the collapse of the system.
Former Power and Energy Minister Patali Champika Ranawaka has called for an independent investigation. Ranawaka, an engineer by profession, told the Daily Mirror online that the blackout was difficult to understand given the digitised system control facility installed in the Pelawatte area, and that without an independent inquiry the Government could conceal the real reasons.
He alleged that the incident could be used to discourage rooftop solar generation, and claimed this would benefit two businessmen he accused of dominating the renewable energy sector.
Background
The NSO operates Sri Lanka’s national power system, dispatching generation to match demand across the grid. The PUCSL is the regulator for the electricity sector.
Islandwide outages have happened before. On 9 February 2025, power failed across the country. The Ceylon Electricity Board said a disturbance at the Panadura grid substation caused an imbalance, while the then Energy Minister attributed it to a monkey that entered the substation. All three generators at the Norochcholai plant disconnected automatically during that incident, removing about 900 megawatts from the grid.
Ranawaka referred to those earlier explanations in his comments, saying authorities had previously blamed a langur monkey and, on another occasion, an overload of electricity from rooftop solar systems.
What it means
With 810 megawatts out of service, the system has less spare capacity while Norochcholai remains offline. The NSO has pointed to hydropower output and lower demand as the factors that should limit disruption, but it has not given a date for the plant’s return.
Households and businesses should follow announcements from the NSO and the Ceylon Electricity Board for any changes to supply. The findings of the investigation, due within a month, are expected to be submitted to the regulator and the ministry.
