Renewable sources now account for 69 percent of Sri Lanka’s total electricity generation capacity, President Anura Kumara Dissanayake said at the Sri Lanka Economic and Investment Summit 2026.
The President said that on recent days up to 77 percent of electricity was produced without diesel. Solar capacity has risen by 1,500 megawatts since the government took office and will reach 2,600 megawatts once current projects finish next year, he said.
A tender for 160 megawatts of grid-scale battery storage is under way, and the first 130 megawatts are expected to be completed by November. A further 250-megawatt battery tender is being evaluated, he said. The government is also reviewing tax incentives for home solar users with battery systems under one megawatt.
The President said competitive tenders have lowered prices. A wind project at Mannar, earlier negotiated at 8.22 cents per kilowatt-hour, drew bids of 3.96 and 3.74 cents when it was retendered. Lower generation costs matter to households and industry because they bear on electricity tariffs.
Four new transmission lines, including Puttalam-Wariyapola and Dambulla-Habarana-Veyangoda, are being tendered to private developers.
