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Sri Lanka Nationwide Blackout Due to Solar Power Surplus

Sri Lanka Nationwide Blackout Due to Solar Power Surplus

MGR Online•International•38m ago

Reader Briefing

Sri Lanka suffered a nationwide power outage on October 17 likely caused by excess solar power production exceeding consumption.

  • •A nationwide blackout occurred in Sri Lanka on Saturday, October 17.
  • •The Electricity Department of Sri Lanka (EDL) attributes the crash to excess solar energy production.
  • •Power was out for over 2 hours with no clear recovery timeline at the time of reporting.
  • •The government aims to increase solar capacity to nearly 4,400 megawatts within 3 years.

Overview

  • •Sri Lanka experienced a nationwide power outage on Saturday, October 17.
  • •The Electricity Department of Sri Lanka (EDL) stated that solar energy production exceeding consumption was the likely cause of the grid failure.
  • •The national power grid was down for more than 2 hours.
  • •Anupura Karunathilaka requested rooftop solar owners to disconnect their systems to aid recovery efforts.
  • •A similar total grid collapse occurred in February 2025 on a sunny Sunday, taking over 6 hours to recover.
  • •Sri Lanka currently has over 3,000 megawatts of installed solar capacity, while daytime demand is approximately 2,000 to 2,500 megawatts.
  • •Tax incentive measures encouraged consumers to use solar energy and sell excess power back to the grid, creating management difficulties for utility providers.
  • •The Sri Lankan government targets increasing solar production to nearly 4,400 megawatts within 3 years, a 388 percent increase from 2024.

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Key Quotes

Anupura Karunathilaka
"We ask for the cooperation of rooftop solar system owners to disconnect their systems until further notice to support recovery efforts."
เราขอความร่วมมือให้เจ้าของระบบโซลาร์เซลล์บนหลังคาทำการตัดการเชื่อมต่อระบบของตนเองจนกว่าจะมีคำสั่งเพิ่มเติม เพื่อสนับสนุนความพยายามในการกู้คืนระบบ

Key Entities

Place

Sri Lanka(ศรีลังกา)ℹ️
The country that experienced a nationwide power outage.

Organization

Electricity Department of Sri Lanka(การไฟฟ้าศรีลังกา)
A state enterprise responsible for managing the national power grid.
Ministry of Energy(กระทรวงพลังงาน)ℹ️
The government ministry overseeing energy affairs in Sri Lanka.

Person

Anupura Karunathilaka(อนุปุระ กรุณาธิละกะ)
The Minister of Energy of Sri Lanka.