Project Director Engineer D.C.S. Alakanda states that the construction of the Umaoya Multipurpose Development Project has been completed, and testing-level operations for the production of hydropower have begun. He mentions that the operation started about a month ago.
Stating that commercial-level operations have also commenced, Project Director Engineer D.C.S. Alakanda also claims that during the test period alone, electricity worth 1 billion rupees was generated and added to the national power system.
He further states that the construction of the entire project has been completed, and it is planned to be inaugurated on April 24th.
Priyantha Nanayakkara, Resident Chief Engineer of the Umaoya Multi-Purpose Development Project, points out that the main objective of the Umaoya Multi-Purpose Development Project is to produce an electricity capacity of 120 MW and add it to the national power system.
He also mentions that agriculture and provision of drinking water are among the other main objectives.
The Umaoya Multipurpose Development Project was initiated in 2011, with an estimated cost of US$514 million.
Of that, $450 million was to be received as loan aid from the Iranian government, but the country’s economy faced difficulties due to the impunity problem affecting the Iranian government. As the first installment of US$ 50 million had already been received and the construction of this multi-purpose project had started, the work of Umaoya Multi-Purpose Project continued based on Sri Lanka’s treasury allocation without interruption.