Did the NPP government cancel Adani Group’s proposed Wind Power Project? Find out the facts…

Subscribe to our WhatsApp Channel

Viral social media posts, fuelled by mainstream media reports, claimed that the new NPP government had cancelled the construction of the Mannar and Pooneryn wind power plants, which the previous government contracted. We checked whether the current government has taken such a decision.

Social Media Posts

The social media posts highlighted that the new NPP government had decided to cancel the Adani wind power project.

Fb | Archive  Fb | Archive

Some news websites in Sri Lanka have also reported that the new government has cancelled the construction of the Mannar and Punareyn wind power plants contracted between the previous government and the Adani Green Agency Company. You can refer to the news here and here.

The Divaina newspaper also reported on this and stated that the new government’s cabinet had approved the cancellation of this agreement.

You can refer to it here and here and view how the same news was reported through television programs that present newspaper articles.

Indian social media users also posted on this.

FB

Accordingly, we checked whether a decision was made to cancel the Adani Group’s wind power plant project.

Fact Check

Environmentalist Mr Rohan Pethiyagoda presented a cabinet paper stating that the Mannara wind power plant project contracted with Adani has been cancelled under the new government. Many people’s attention was drawn to this news.

Accordingly, based on this cabinet paper, many media in Sri Lanka also reported that the project had been cancelled.

Below is that Cabinet paper.

Since the photos are not clear, the point mentioned under Roman number 1 on the first page of the cabinet paper is as follows.

1. to revoke the Cabinet decision dated 2024-05-05 on the Memorandum dated 2024-05-03 numbered as CP No.24/0850/621/047, submitted by the then Minister of Power and Energy on “Proposal Adani Green Energy SL Limited for the development of 484MW e Wind Power Plants in Mannar and Pooneryn

Accordingly, as stated in the cabinet paper, the former Minister for Power & Energy, Kanchana Wijesekara, had submitted a proposal related to Adani Green Agency Company to develop Mannar and Punareyn wind power plants in March 2024. The previous government’s cabinet also approved the proposal on May 5th, 2024. Accordingly, the new government’s cabinet has cancelled this proposal, which was approved by the previous government’s cabinet.

What is the cabinet decision of the previous government, which the new government cancelled?

The Cabinet Ministers have approved the proposal presented by the former Minister of Power and Energy, Kanchana Wijesekara, to handover the electricity purchase tender to M/s Adani Green Energy SL Limited for a period of 20 years and to accept the final tariff of US$ 8.26 cents per kilowatt hour for the electricity generated under the said proposed project of construction of wind plants at Mannar and Punareyn on 5th May 2024. The cabinet decision was stated on the official cabinet office website.

Cabinet Decisions May 2024

Accordingly, it is clear that the new government cabinet has only cancelled the electricity purchase deal for Sri Lanka from India’s Adani Green Energy Company. This means the project of constructing wind power plants in Mannar and Punareyn with Adani Green Energy Company has not been cancelled.

Here and here, you can refer to how the Indian media reported the correct news of Sri Lanka’s cancellation of a power purchase deal with Adani. Accordingly, the Indian media had reported that the Sri Lankan government had cancelled the power purchase agreement but had not cancelled the project.

Furthermore, on the second page of the above cabinet paper, which states that Sri Lanka has cancelled the power purchase deal from India’s Adani Green Energy Company, it is indicated under Roman number 2 that a committee has been appointed to review the entire project.

Adani Company

With the news that the current government has cancelled the contract between the previous government and the Adani Green Energy Company, they issued a statement stating that they deny the reports that the Sri Lankan government has cancelled the wind power project.

The statement further clarifies that the decision to re-evaluate the tariffs on 2nd January 2025, which the Sri Lanka Cabinet approved in May 2024, is a standard review process undertaken by the new government with the aim of ensuring that the review is aligned with the country’s updated energy policies and priorities. 

Accordingly, in the press release, Adani Group also emphasizes its commitment to a one-billion-dollar investment in Sri Lanka’s green energy sector.

Foreign Affairs Minister Vijitha Herath and Energy Minister Kumar Jayakody.

In this regard, Foreign Affairs Minister Mr Vijitha Herath and Energy Minister Mr Kumara Jayakody have commented to the media. Accordingly, Minister Vijitha Herath states that as there is a court case regarding the construction of the Mannar Wind Power Plant, no decision has been made to cancel the project until the court makes the final decision.

Further, he states that the Adani group has given a higher price for this project, and so the government of Sri Lanka has informed the Indian officials that they do not agree with it. However, no decision has been taken to cancel the project.

Energy Minister Mr Kumar Jayakody also says that no decision has been taken to cancel the Mannar wind power plants proposed to be built by Adani Green Agency. He further stated that he has submitted a report to the Cabinet to inform the Ministers about the current situation in order to review the project according to the new government policies. The minister added that the final decision on the project will depend on the court’s decision. You can refer to them from here and here.

Udayanga Hemapala, the Secretary of the Ministry of Energy

We inquired with the secretary of the Ministry of Energy, Mr Udayanga Hemapala, and he also mentioned that the project is not cancelled. He mentioned that such a project could not be cancelled all at once and that a further review would be conducted. He stated that a committee has been appointed to do that.

Cabinet Spokesperson Nalinda Jayatissa

Cabinet Spokesperson Nalinda Jayatissa explained the government’s position on the 22nd when there was news about the current government cancelling the wind power plant project with the Adani group.

Accordingly, it was officially announced that no decision had been taken to cancel the wind power plant construction in the Mannar and Punareyn areas. He furthermore stated that 5 cases related to this project have been filed in the court and will be examined soon.

The minister further stated that the new government has not agreed on the prices related to the project, and the Cabinet has decided to re-evaluate and review it.

He pointed out that a decision can be reached based on the reviews of the project by the appointed committee.

Join us to learn more about our investigative fact findings.

Facebook | Twitter | Instagram | Google News | TikTok

Conclusion

The Sri Lankan government has not cancelled the Mannar wind power plant project contracted by the previous government, and only the agreement agreed under the previous government to purchase electricity from the Adani group has been cancelled. A committee has also been appointed to review the entire project.