The Hon. Kabir Hashim
Kabir Hashim argued that the Ceylon Electricity Board is profitable when recent earnings and clawback provisions are considered, and that further tariff increases after the June 2025 increase are unjustified. He said the proposed increase is driven by a Cabinet decision linked to IMF EFF Third Review conditions to pass legacy debt to consumers, rather than by operating costs, and questioned whether the tariff formula legally permits this. He also asked whether IMF-flagged accounting and data issues at CEB had been corrected and sought details on when and how the promised 30% reduction in electricity bills would be delivered.
Verbatim record (translated)
Machine-translated from Sinhala / Tamil / English¶ 01 I need only two minutes.
¶ 02 Given the above, CEB is profitable, not loss-making. There is also a clawback clause: in Jan–Jun 2024, CEB earned Rs. 511 billion; it is not reflected in the 2025 accounts. If included, there is no loss. You increased tariffs by 15% in June 2025 and now seek another 6.8%—this is unjustified. The issue is not CEB’s operating costs alone. Under the IMF EFF Third Review, there is pressure to load “legacy debt” of about Rs. 1,820 billion onto consumers via the tariff formula by Cabinet decision. That is the driver here—not costs.
¶ 03 CEB’s own accounts show monthly profits since April; and we are entering the rainy season—the least-cost generation period—reservoirs are spilling. There is no need for a hike. The tariff formula does not provide for inserting legacy debt. If you believe it does, please show it to this House.
¶ 04 There are issues about CEB accounting and data accuracy—IMF has flagged this. Has it been rectified? Finally, you promised a 30% bill reduction. Show how, with your energy mix and least-cost dispatch, you will deliver and when. Thank you.
Provenance
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- Hansard, Thursday, 25 September 2025 ·No. 1759483897051145 ·English daily/uncorrected Hansard
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Cite as: The Hon. Kabir Hashim. 10th Parliament, Parliament of Sri Lanka. Hansard, 25 September 2025. No. 1759483897051145. Politick, https://staging.politick.io/lk/speeches/20194