The Hon. (Dr.) Najith Indika

¶ 01 Hon. Presiding Member, the Opposition brought this Adjournment Debate alleging a coal tender fraud. Our side has explained the process and current status. This is a tender called openly after two‑and‑a‑half to three years of Cabinet‑only awards to a single company without competitive tender in 2023–2025. Now the issue is how to deal with any lower‑quality deliveries under a proper tender.

¶ 02 They also claim this will raise electricity tariffs by 10%. The CEB has made separate applications to the PUCSL with specific reasons—coal quality is not among them. Stop fabricating. Those who once raised tariffs by 400% now warn about a hypothetical 10%.

¶ 03 We said we would reduce tariffs by a third over three years. Examples: utility‑scale solar LCOE fell from Rs. 36 to Rs. 17; the Adani‑linked price of Rs. 24 was bettered by getting Rs. 12 with competitive tendering to a different company. Battery storage costs also halved towards Rs. 12. We are cutting costs in the power sector and moving to renewables.

¶ 04 This morning they even spoke about the Minister’s wife’s mother’s bankbook—clearly rehearsed smear tactics. Let them bring the photocopy they promised.

¶ 05 An SLPP MP spoke with passion; fair enough. But who awarded coal for three years without tenders via Cabinet papers, and to whose company? As I recall, that company belonged to a classmate of Yoshitha Rajapaksa. The same firm was discussed before in the Ondansetron drug issue. (To the Hon. D.V. Chanaka: I did not mention your name.)