The Sri Lankan Cabinet has announced a power purchase agreement (PPA) for a 700 MW floating solar and 1,500 MWh battery energy storage system (BESS) facility, paving the way for this massive facility to come up in Killinochi district.
The government has signed the power supply contract with the United Solar Group of Australia. Sri Lankan Minister of Power and Energy, Kanchana Wijesekera announced in a social media post, "The Solar power project will be installed on the surface of the Poonakary Tank in the Killinochi District, with a Foreign Direct Investment of $1,727 Million."
According to local media reports, the project had been awarded to the Australian company in September 2023 with the government reserving $500 million for domestic project components.
In November 2023, the Ceylon Electricity Board launched an expression of interest (EOI) round for 2×100 MW floating solar power plants on the Samanalawewa reservoir (see Sri Lanka Exploring Feasibility Of Floating Solar Technology).
The 700 MW project, as and when realized, should be among the largest floating solar PV projects globally. Currently, the largest floating PV project in Southeast Asia is in Indonesia with a 192 MW capacity that's soon to be expanded to 500 MW (see SE Asia's Largest Floating Solar Plant Inaugurated).