Sri Lanka, May 8 -- Power and Energy Minister Kanchana Wijesekera told Parliament yesterday that the country had lost a massive amount of money due to delays in the construction and commissioning of the Uma Oya hydropower plant.

This has resulted in an annual loss of Rs 9.8 billion for the Ceylon Electricity Board (CEB). The Uma Oya project adds 120 megawatts of electricity to the national grid annually. The Minister also said that there are no reports of environmental damage due to the project.

"The delays in the construction and commissioning of the hydropower plant due to various politically motivated protests have caused a loss of Rs. 9.8 billion per annum to the CEB. The hydropower plant project was scheduled to be commissioned in ...