Unions oppose alleged bid to privatise CEB

By Maheesha Mudugamuwa-March 25, 2016

Trade unionists at the Ceylon Electricity Board (CEB) yesterday alleged that there were again hidden attempts to privatise electricity generation.

The President of the Lanka Viduli Podu Sevaka Sangamaya (LVPSS) Malaka Wickramasinghe told The Island that the government was trying to sell off national assets like the CEB, instead of improving their management.

Early this year the CEB Engineer’s Union had informed all other trade unions at the CEB of the alleged privatisation plans of the government, he noted.

Power and Renewable Energy Minister Ranjith Siyambalapitiya,who made inquiries from the Finance Minister Ravi Karunanayake, informed unions there was no plans to privatise the CEB but the Norochcholai Power coal-fired power plant management would be divested to obtain a loan.

Wickramasinghe claimed that all activities of the CEB from the construction of large scale power plants to providing electricity supply to households had been given to private companies on contract basis by neglecting the CEB workers.

He however urged the government to stop all aspects of privatisation of CEB and its activities.

Referring to the recent countrywide power blackouts, Wickramasinghe stressed that CEB engineers should take the responsibility for them as the total control of the board was in the hands of its engineers at present.

The President of CEB Engineer’s Union Athula Wanniarachchi alleged that there were some plans to convert the CEB into a government owned company as an initial step to its privatisation, but at the end of the journey it would attempt to privatise the entire state’s electricity generation capacity.

He stressed five committees had been appointed to find out long-term solutions for the possible countrywide power outages in the future and the outcome of the committees’ findings should be considered to see any government moves towards  privatisation.

Wanniarachchi said at present the government would not take immediate steps to privatise the CEB, but there was a risk of it resorting to such action in the future.

Asked whether the CEB engineers should be held responsible for recent blackouts, Wanniarachchi stressed several unions were misusing the current situation to highlight their demands and if there weren’t engineers controlling the CEB, it would also have to face the same fate as the Colombo Port and the Railway Department.