According to Reuters, Sri Lanka will cancel plans for an Indian-built coal plant, in favour of an LNG power plant. The facility will help provide necessary power generation capacity, since the country recently experienced a serious blackout.
The energy ministry secretary, B. M. S. Batagoda, reportedly said that residents of Sampur, Sri Lanka, have opposed a coal-fired plant for years. In addition to this, environmental groups have also expressed concerns about a potential coal-fired facility. Thus, an LNG-powered alternative has been proposed.
Although an LNG-powered plant would provide a cleaner alternative, Sri Lanka does not currently have any import infrastructure for the fuel, and so this would provide an additional challenge. In addition to this, it remains unclear which Indian companies could be chosen as partners for the LNG facility.
Edited from various sources by David Rowlands