Sri Lanka announced a schedule of nationwide rolling blackouts starting Monday (October 19, 2026), just two days after a complete national grid collapse triggered by a generator failure at the country's main 900-megawatt coal-fired complex north of Colombo. Utility spokesman Buddhika Samarasekara stated that the initial three-day rationing will involve staggered one-hour power cuts over a four-hour window to bridge a 300-megawatt shortfall until the plant is successfully restarted.
Restoration efforts have been notably complicated by surplus generation from rooftop solar panels, which continue feeding into the system and causing grid instability. With over 3,000 megawatts of installed solar capacity against daytime demands of 2,000 to 2,500 megawatts, authorities are struggling to manage supply imbalances, mirroring a similar nationwide blackout caused by solar over-generation in February 2025.
— Daily Best News Desk • Fearless in the search for truth
Reported by International Desk • Edited by the Daily Best News desk. Send corrections to [email protected].
