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VERIFIED
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Date 6 June 2018
RECIPIENT International Finance Corporation (IFC)
Ed.1 First complete and reviewed, version submitted to IFC for review and comment. The
document covers the description of the Monaragala sites and provides an initial feasibility
NOTES
assessment about the deployment of a sizeable utility-scale solar PV project.
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
The International Finance Corporation (IFC) has been invited by the Government of Sri Lanka (GoSL) to
provide transaction advisory services about utility-scale solar Photovoltaic (PV) IPP (Independent Power
Producer) project. In this framework, IFC has engaged TYPSA to provide consulting services in the area
energy engineering, environmental and social evaluation.
The services to be provided by TYPSA are structured in two phases. Phase 1, refers to conducting due
diligence on some candidate sites and supporting the preparation of the transaction structure. The first
step, in Phase 1 is to assess the potential suitability of candidate sites, from the technical, environmental
and social points of view. Results corresponding to this first step are reported in this document.
The Sri Lanka Sustainable Energy Authority (SEA) has been the nominated as the Agency responsible
for providing candidate sites. Three sites had been proposed for consideration:
• Pooneryn site
• Monaragala sites 1 and 2
This report pertains to the Monaragala sites. A separate document covering the Pooneryn site has been
already published. These sites are part of a wide area to the south-east of the town of Monaragala that
has been studied as a potential home to new utility-scale PV capacity. The study area is situated between
the high mountains at the western end and the flatter terrain that covers the broad eastern and southern
plain. It combines different geographic and geological features and can be considered hilly, and steep but
also as a rolling terrain in some areas within an elevation range of 160 to 450 metres.
The study indicates that the area at large and the available interconnection could probably support a total
solar capacity around 100MW; maybe more. The topography, geotechnical and vegetation distribution
features in the area does not make easy to find one single sizeable suitable plot to would host one huge
PV plant. Our team recommends that rather than considering one single site the objective PV capacity
could be reached by setting up in two or three plants, so that adequate quality plots can be found and the
environmental and social footprints of the plant could be better managed.
The sites so chosen would offer attractive solar resources for renewable energy generation. The sites
would show as main environmental values, a varied vegetation landscape that includes grown-up trees,
and a transient elephant population. From the social perspective, the area is sparsely occupied, with very
small and isolated human settlements mostly devoted to the traditional Chena cultivation, which involves
temporary occupation of lands.
Typsa thinks that it is possible to find ways to develop adequately develop the Moneragala areas for
renewable energy in economically attractive terms while reducing the environmental impacts to
acceptable levels. To deal with the social, potential compensatory measure might be needed for
potentially affected dwellers. To safely deal with the transient elephant population, we recommend setting
up adequate wide free corridors and protecting the solar facilities with proper fencing.
As seen in this report, the nearby Monaragala substation offers very a convenient evacuation option for a
large PV plant. This substation is new and well maintained and has space readily available for a new
132kV entry bay. Under this approach, the various nearby PV plants would be interlinked using 33kV
lines (some few km long), and the plant closest to Monaragala would then host a 33/132kV step-up
substation, which would be connected with the Monaragala substation by means of a new aerial 132kV
line (estimated to be around 20km long).
The short circuit power estimated to be available at the Monaragala substation would indicate that the
node can accept the proposed 100MW of non-dispatchable solar energy. However, this discussion needs
to be completed, in the future, with an in-depth analysis of the robustness of the grid at the point of
interconnection.
Also, it has been estimated that most of the energy that would be produced at the Moneragala sites,
would have to be exported away from the node, as the local demand seems to be low. To achieve this,
CEB has indicated that line reinforcements in the 132kV lines going to Inginiyagala and Rantembe will be
needed (the cost of these reinforcements has not been considered in the analysis)..
As a result, both interconnection and environmental criteria suggest that a sensible way to exploit the
excellent energy resources in the Monaragla region would be to launch a large solar project by merging
two or three solar medium scale solar plants..
As a summary, our team thinks that it is possible to develop a large utility-scale solar energy project in the
Monaragala Region, this would improve the energy supply in the area, in an economically attractive way;
and deploy the assets on the ground in a form that would be respectful to the existing environmental and
social situation in region.
TABLE OF CONTENTS
0. REFERENCE MATERIAL..................................................................................................................... 6
0.A LIST OF ACRONYMS ....................................................................................................................................... 6
0.B LIST OF FIGURES ............................................................................................................................................ 7
0.CLIST OF TABLES .............................................................................................................................................. 9
1. INTRODUCTION ................................................................................................................................. 10
2. PROJECT BACKGROUND ................................................................................................................ 11
3. ACCOUNT OF STAKEHOLDER MEETINGS AND FIELD WORK ................................................... 14
3.1. MEETINGS ..................................................................................................................................................... 14
3.2. BRIEF ACCOUNT OF FIELD WORK PERFORMED ...................................................................................... 15
4. THE MONARAGALA SITES .............................................................................................................. 16
4.1. TOPOGRAPHIC AND GEOTECHNICAL FEATURES .................................................................................... 18
4.2. SITE ACCESS................................................................................................................................................. 24
4.3. GENERAL ENVIRONMENTAL AND SOCIAL ASPECTS ............................................................................... 25
4.4. POTENTIAL AREAS OF SOCIAL AND ENVIRONMENTAL CONCERN AND POSSIBLE MITIGATION
STRATEGIES ............................................................................................................................................ 27
5. INTERCONNECTION OPTIONS FOR MONARAGALA .................................................................... 29
5.1. DISCUSSION ON GRID ROBUSTNESS ........................................................................................................ 29
5.2. MONARAGALA SUBSTATION ....................................................................................................................... 30
5.3. SIZING MONARAGALA SOLAR PROJECT ................................................................................................... 31
5.4. BRIEF COMMENT ABOUT THE SRI LANKA GRID CODE ............................................................................ 32
6. PRODUCTION STUDY ....................................................................................................................... 34
6.1. SOLAR RESOURCE AND WIND ESTIMATE ................................................................................................. 34
6.2. PRODUCTION ESTIMATE ............................................................................................................................. 37
7. TENTATIVE LAYOUTS SOLAR FIELD AND INTERCONNECTION ................................................ 39
7.1. TENTATIVE LAYOUTS FOR THE SOLAR FIELDS........................................................................................ 39
7.2. INTERCONNECTION CONCEPT ................................................................................................................... 40
8. FINANCIAL ANALYSIS ...................................................................................................................... 42
8.1. CAPEX ............................................................................................................................................................ 42
8.2. LCOE ESTIMATES ......................................................................................................................................... 42
9. SITE EVALUATION SUMMARY ........................................................................................................ 44
9.1. MONARAGALA SITE EVALUATION MATRIX ................................................................................................ 44
9.2. MONARAGALA EVALUATION SUMMARY .................................................................................................... 49
REFERENCES ........................................................................................................................................... 50
ANNEXES I: PVSYST OUTPUTS FOR MONARAGALA SOLAR FIELD ................................................ 51
0. REFERENCE MATERIAL
PV Photovoltaic
SC Short circuit
Note: figure numbers are composed by two numbers separated by a hyphen (like a-b). The first indicate
the document section where the figure is located and the second the order in which the figure is displayed
in that section
Figure 2-2 Yearly evolution of the energy demand in Sri Lanka ................................................................ 11
Figure 2-4 Sri Lanka 2011 electricity transmission system scheme .......................................................... 13
Figure 4-5 Rock outcrops typically found in the area under investigation .................................................. 19
Figure 4-6 Farm located within the area under consideration .................................................................... 20
Figure 4-12 Looking south in site 2. Some superficial rocks and crops can be observed. ....................... 22
Figure 4-13 South view from the centre of area 2: rocky prominences and scattered trees. .................... 23
Figure 5-1 Power Factor Variation and Reactive Power Capability ........................................................... 32
Figure 6-2 Average monthly temperature for MN, SG and NASA databases ............................................ 34
Figure 6-3 Average monthly GHI for MN, SG, PVGIS and NASA databases ........................................... 35
Figure 6-4 Average monthly DHI for MN, SG, PVGIS and NASA databases ........................................... 35
Figure 6-5 Meteorological data used in the Monaragala PVSyst simulation ............................................. 36
Figure 7-1 Simplified SLD showing connection of the first phase solar field............................................. 41
Note: table numbers are composed of two digits separated by a hyphen (like a-b). The first indicates the
document section where the figure is located and the second the order in which the figure is displayed in
that section
1. INTRODUCTION
The International Finance Corporation (IFC) has been invited by the Government of Sri Lanka (GoSL) to
provide transaction advisory services about utility-scale solar Photovoltaic (PV) IPP (Independent Power
Producer) project. In this framework, IFC has engaged TYPSA to provide consulting services in the area
energy engineering, environmental and social evaluation.
The services to be provided by TYPSA are structured in two phases. Phase 1, refers to conducting due
diligence on some candidate sites and supporting the preparation of the transaction structure. The first
step, in Phase 1 is to assess the potential suitability of candidate sites, from the technical, environmental
and social points of view. Results corresponding to this first step are reported in this document.
The Sri Lanka Sustainable Energy Authority (SEA) has been the nominated as the Agency responsible
for providing candidate sites. Three sites had been proposed for consideration:
• Pooneryn site
• Monaragala sites 1 and 2
The Monaragala sites are situated in the Monaragala region, in the south-east part of the country. This
report pertains to these two sites. A separate report has been published about the Pooneryn site.
The Typsa team has visited the two Monaragala sites and conducted a series of meetings with SEA,
Ceylon Electricity Board (CEB), the Central Environmental Authority (CEA), the Sri Lanka Forest
Department (FDSL) and the Ministry of Power and Renewable Energy (MoPRE). This work has been
conducive to the preparation of this report.
2. PROJECT BACKGROUND
Sri Lanka has been enjoying a fast economic growth for more than a decade with a GDP growth rate (in
local currency units) mostly placed above the 4% mark for more than a decade (see figure 2-1).
In this scenario, IFC has been invited by Sri Lanka Sustainable Energy Authority (SEA) to provide
transaction advisory services in relation to a solar Photovoltaic (PV) project of at least 100 MW.
This project would be structured as DBFOT, where a private sector actor will develop, build, finance and
operate the project and SEA would provide access to suitable land resources. As part of this scheme,
Ceylon Electricity Board (CEB) will purchase the generated electricity as per a Power Purchase
Agreement (PPA). CEB would also cooperate in the development of the required transmission
infrastructure.
CEB, is a state-owned integrated utility in Sri Lanka and system operator in most of the country. CEB’s
transmission system comprises of 220kV and 132kV transmission network interconnected to switching
stations, grid substations and power stations. CEB generation is made of hydro, thermal and wind power
plants connected to the transmission system at the above-mentioned voltage levels.
The total installed capacity of all hydropower stations owned and operated by CEB is 1377 MW. The total
installed capacity of all thermal power plants owned by CEB is 1444MW. In addition, 671 MW of private
thermal power plants are connected to the system.
Approximately 437 MW of embedded Non-Convectional Renewable Energy plants are connected to the
national grid. Out of this, 288 MW of mini hydro plants, 128 MW of wind power plants, 19.6 MW of Wood
fuel power plants and 1.4MW Solar power plants are presently connected to the system. At the end of
2014, total installed capacity of the system is 3932 MW. A representation of CEB’s transmission system is
shown below (figure 2-4):
To assure the safe connection of the new facilities (new generation and new significant loads) a grid code
has been prepared (last version dated January 2018), that it is to supersede the actual CEB Guide for
Grid Interconnection for Embedded Generators dated December 2000 (this grid code is analysed by
Typsa in a separate document, and briefly commented hereinafter).
Within the scope of this project, the Typsa team has visited Sri Lanka on three different occasions. In
each of these visits, Typsa’s team has: (i) had several meetings in Colombo with crucial stakeholders (ii)
made field trips to the sites to conduct visual inspection.
3.1. MEETINGS
This is the account of the meetings held in Colombo during the three trips done, so far, in the course of
the contract.
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1 February 27 , 2017 IFC Kick off meeting
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1 February 27 , 2017 CEB Discussion of the project program
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1 February 27 , 2017 SEA Discussion of the project program
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1 March 2 , 2018 CEB Discussion of interconnection issues
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2 December 21 , 2917 Ministry of Energy and CEB Presentation of preliminary findings.
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3 March 13 , 2018 SEA Pooneryn combined project
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3 March 14 , 2018 CEB Discussion of interconnection issues
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3 March 14 , 2018 Central Environmental Agency Discussion with CEA
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3 March 15 , 2018 CEB Discussion of interconnection issues
Visit to all of the three sites was done in all cases, by a team consultants (2 or 3 consultants) from Typsa.
The exact dates in which these sites visits where completed are shown here below:
Date Site
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February 28 and March 1 , 2017 Moneragala 1 site & Substation
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December 19 and 20 , 2018 Pooneryn site & Kilinochchi Substation
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March 14 and 15 , 2018 Moneragala 2 site
In the course of work, in February 2017 (see section 3.2. the Typsa team first visit a site located some 19
km to the South West of the town of Monaragala. This site is referred to here as Monaragala site 1. Later
in March 2018, the team visit a second site located in the same area, referred to in here as Monaragala 2.
This site is approximately located 5 km the South West of the first Monaragala site. Both sites appear to
be part of the wide area with relatively uniform landscape and geomorphological features, extending to
the East and South of the town of Monaragala.
The two sites under primary consideration can be approximately depicted as rectangles as shown in the
figures below.
• Longitude:
• UTM 550363 E / 81º 27’ 20.72” E
• Latitude:
• UTM 748959 N / 6º 46’ 31.93” N
• Huso:44 N
• Average elevation: 150m
• Longitude:
• UTM 553443 E / 81º 29’ 0.94” E
• Latitude:
• UTM 745103 N / 6º 44’ 26.27” N
• Huso:44 N
• Average elevation: 120m.
The Monaragala district is located within a transitional zone that goes from the central highlands to flat
lowlands. In particular, the study area is situated between the mountains at the west and the flatter terrain
that covers the broad eastern and southern plain. It combines different geographic and geological
features and can be considered hilly, and steep but also as a rolling terrain in some areas within an
elevation range of 160 to 450 metres. The information gathered from publicly available sources indicate
that the underlying substrate is on Vijayan Complex, but near to the transition of the Highland complex
(see figure 4-4).
During our visit, we found what mostly appeared to be soils of loamy to clayey texture. They were
characterised by a dark grey to blackish coloured of at least 25 cm thick and had a crumb structure. It is
expected that saturation would be medium to high, which would generally increase with depth. We could
also observe some sub-surface consisting of sandy clay to gravelly clay. According to the information
received from the Forest Department and SEA, these soils are wet or even inundated during most of the
rainy season.
According to the “Distribution of Benchmark Soil in the Intermediate Zone of Sri Lanka” (Soil Society of Sri
Lanka), the area of Siyambalanduwa (to the West of Monaragala) also presents areas of bed rock
exposures. Our observations confirm this point as we also detected numerous large rocks emerging with
areas of clays suggesting a very composite substrate (see figure 4-5 as an example).
Figure 4-5 Rock outcrops typically found in the area under investigation
According to the Forest Department, the Kotiyagala- Wattegama forest reserve where the sites are
proposed spreads over 29,000ha, of which around 5,000ha remain undisturbed. During our visit, we could
1
note dispersed encroached cultivation plots (Chena cultivation ), we could also see some logging activity,
some cattle and some industrial farming.
.
Figure 4-7 Typical landscape in the area under consideration
The terrain is covered with high vegetation in many areas. It is difficult to guess the topography only by
mere observation at ground level. A topographic survey of the area would be highly valuable for the
selection of the most suitable plots within the broad area under consideration..
Our observations indicate that both sites (Monaragala 1 and 2) were very similar regarding physical
characteristics. They combine areas of high trees, high vegetation and rocky elevations with clear and flat
areas, of surface 1-2 hectares maximum, which are used for cultivation (Chena) and small orchards.
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Chena is regarded as the oldest form of cultivation in Sri Lanka, extending as far back as 5000 years in Sri Lankan
history, typically involving small patches of land, situated in forest areas, that are cultivated relatively short periods of
time before being abandoned.
But some differences could be mentioned between the Monaragala 1 and 2 sites. Typsa noted that the
terrain is particular undulant at site 1, where there are abundant small hills surrounded and covered with
vegetation. In general, area 1 shows a more dense and high vegetation while area 2 has more areas with
only low vegetation (grass).
Figure 4-13 South view from the centre of area 2: rocky prominences and scattered trees.
The access for the area under consideration uses the A4 road, passing by Monaragala and surrounding
the Maragala Mountain (1111 m altitude.) by the north face and then following to Kodayanna Junction
(close to Bownbagahewela) and then turn to South. The Forest Department indicated that currently it is
not possible to have a more direct access from the West.
access to the site turns into a dirt and narrow road and we had to change to special vehicle (farm tractor).
The distance to the site from that point is approximately seven kilometres.
Occasionally the routes cross some rivers (with limited water flow at the time of visit). Some new small
bridges would also be needed and some old existing one would need to be reconditioned.
Although the existing roads can be used for access (after performing some reconditioning works), we
suggest that alternative routes could be explored. As the Gen-Tie line to the substation would need to be
executed from scratch, maybe a more direct access from the West could be found avoiding the travel
time from Monaragala (see figure at the beginning of this section). At any rate, a suitable access to the
site would need to be planned and executed.
Biogeographically, the proposed project area lies within the low country Dry Zone. Floristically it comes
under Dry and Arid Lowlands Floristic Zone. Tropical Dry Mixed Evergreen Forests {Manilkara
Community, Mixed community (Chloroxylon-Vitex-Berrya-Schleichera series)}, Tropical Thorn Forests
(Manilkara-Chloroxylon-Salvadora-Randia series), Damana and Villu Grasslands, Flood-plain Wetlands,
Riverine and Gallery Forests are typical natural vegetation formations in Dry and Arid Lowlands Floristic
Zone.
• Disturbed habitats due to chena cultivation: most of the area (about 80%) identified for
development falls into this category. At the time of the initial field investigation, few Zea mays
(Corn) cultivations and water melon cultivations were observed. Rest of the area is abandoned
after cultivation. These lands are heavily invaded by alien invasive grass species Panicum
maximum. Few tree species such as Drypetes sepiaria, Adina cordifolia can be seen scattered
throughout this habitat, which are the remnants of the destroyed forest. The soil looks very good
for cultivation. This habitat type is patchy since the two other habitat types distributed in to this
main habitat type.
• Riparian habitat: There are some small, seasonal streams within the site. Very thin strip of
riparian vegetation has been retained along these streams. It consists of shrubs and trees.
Drypetes sepiaria, Dimorphocalyx glabellus, Diospyros ebenum, Diospyros ovalifolia, Terminalia
arjuna, Garcinia spicata are the dominant species observed in this habitat. This vegetation helps
to reduce the soil erosion.
• Rock outcrops with tree-dominated vegetation: Forest cover in this habitat has remained
undisturbed due the ground condition not being suitable for cultivation. This habitat lies at higher
elevation than the other two. It contains typical dry zone forest habitats comprising of species
such as Cordia dichotoma, Stereospermum tetragonum, Drypetes sepiaria, Diospyros ebenum,
Manilkara hexandra, Vitex altissima, Albizia odoratissima.
• Floral assemblage: Floral assemblage comprise mostly of common species as the site remains
highly disturbed. Two nationally threatened species including the endangered (EN) Diospyros
ebenum and vulnerable (VU) Manilkara hexandra was observed in relatively undisturbed riparian
SP2530-IN-01-Phase1A-Assessment-of-Sites-Monaragala Part Ed1.docx 26
Technical Consultant for grid connected Solar PV
project in Sri Lanka. Pre-feasibility report
and rock outcrop associated vegetation. In addition, two species of nationally near threatened
species were recorded in riparian and rock outcrop associated vegetation.
• Faunal Assemblage: The faunal assemblage comprise of common species as there is very little
natural vegetation cover in the area identified for project implementation. The site is used as a
feeding area by the globally endangered (EN) Asian elephants Elephas maximus.
The project area does not have any permanent human settlements. This area is currently under heavy
seasonal cultivation of corn. During the cultivation season the farmers establish temporary dwellings to
tend to their crops.
The following specific potential environmental concerns are noted and should be further investigated:
• Impact on the local communities: Even though there are no permanent settlements if the area
identified for developing the area is used extensively for seasonal cultivation under rain-fed
irrigation. Therefore, the implementation of the project will result in a loss of livelihoods for these
farmers.
• Impact on Habitats: Nearly 80% of the area identified for project activities can be defined as
lands abandoned after cultivation that is covered with invasive alien grass species Panicum
maximum. This habitat does not support any critical species and therefore loss of habitat is not a
major concern.
• Impact on Wildlife: Since the site selected for the proposed project does not support critical
species it will not have a significant impact on wildlife. However, it is strongly recommended that
relatively undisturbed riparian and rock outcrop associated vegetation should not be disturbed
during project implementation as these small habitat patches are the only remnants of the natural
habitats that existed in the area and functions as the only remaining natural habitats for fauna
and flora inhabiting the area. The area supports both Asian elephant herds and resident males
throughout the year. It is likely that there is a high seasonal change in elephant presence related
to cultivation. The adjoining area has a high level of human-elephant conflict (HEC). Therefore,
this area is also likely to have a high level of HEC. Given the extent of the project area
(approximately 300 ha) it is unlikely to have a significant impact on elephant conservation or
HEC. However, the development will mean that elephants lose approximately 300 ha of foraging
area.
• Impact on the protected areas declared under National or International laws: The site
selected for the project is designated as a forest reserve. However, the area has been under
massive cultivation for many years and therefore does not qualify as a forest reserve any further.
The site lies in close proximity to Kumbukkana Conservation Forest and Ruhunaa and Kumana
National Parks are also located south of the project site. The proposed activities will not directly
or indirectly impact these protected areas.
• First, providing suitable compensation for the farmers that are currently using the project site for
seasonal cultivation and,
• Second, mitigation measures against the impact of elephants on the installation. Therefore the
solar farms will have to be protected from elephants, which can be easily achieved by erecting an
electric fence around the perimeter of the development area.
The amount of new intermittent renewable energy capacity that a node in an electrical grid can typically
accept is dependent on carrying capacity of the grid at the node and on the electrical strength of the grid
at the point of interconnection.
The strength of the electric power system is defined as the ability of the system to maintain its voltage
during the injection of reactive power. In comparison with weaker systems, stronger systems will
experience less voltage change following an injection of reactive power. Short Circuit Ratio (SCR),
defined as the ratio of the interconnected grid’s short circuit MVA (before connecting the generator) to the
MW size of the interconnecting generator, has been utilised to quantify the strength of the electric power
system with respect to the interconnecting generator. The lower the SCR, the weaker the electric power
grid will be. Weak electrical systems become more troublesome when renewable sources with fast
controllers are connected to them. This is because the voltage/reactive power control loops within these
electronic-based generation units are capable of almost instantaneous reactive power injection in
2
response to any voltage change at the point of interconnection .
A first approach to estimating how much renewable energy capacity can be connected to a given node
can be obtained by using the so-called Short Circuit Ratios (SCR), arithmetically defined as follows.
SCR = Short circuit power at the POI (without generator) / Generation capacity
The short-circuit power at the POI naturally depends on the amount of generation and demand at any
given moment in time. It is not, therefore, a constant value. The generation capacity also varies along the
day. The use of the SCR ratio is then done, by looking for those scenarios where the conditions pose a
threat to the grid stability. For a solar project, for example, that would be around the central hours of the
day, when the solar generation can be expected to reach a peak. For wind projects, the assessment
needs to include the night hours, where possibly both other sources of production and demand are in the
low part of their daily profile.
Estimation of the short circuit power at any point in the grid can be done using a grid model. CEB has the
Sri Lanka grid modelled using the well know PSS/E software and has information about the generation
and demand scenarios typical of the Sri Lanka electricity power system. TYPSA team had run the grid
model obtaining the SCL values for the Monaragala substation (provided below).
The SCR values obtained can then be used as a proxy to do an estimate of the renewable energy
generation capacity, by setting up some criteria about which are acceptable SCR ranges. The technical
literature here does not seem to show unanimous rules about which are acceptable SCR values for solar
or wind generation facilities. For example, Kundur (see reference 5) indicate that SCR above 5 denotes
high system strength, whereas SCR between 3 and 5 would correspond to moderate strength situations,
2
Fast reactive power injection/absorption to a weak grid, characterized by high Volt/VAR sensitivity, may translate to
un-damped voltage oscillations. Therefore, apart from the system strength, the speed of the voltage controllers
associated with the renewable sources has an impact on the dynamic response of the renewable source and the
stability of the interconnected grid. While reducing the voltage controller gain will slow down the voltage controller
response associated with the renewable sources and could mitigate the voltage oscillations, it will also slow down the
post-contingency voltage recovery. The balance between the post-fault transient voltage recovery and a stable
response is critical to grid integration studies for renewable sources connecting to weaker portions of the grid.
and values below 3 would signal weak condition. Kundur and others (see, for examples 3) also suggests
that with modern in the AC and DC control systems, SCR values above 3 could be considered as
depicting a high stability scenario.
The closest facility that could serve as a conduit for energy evacuation out of the Monaragala region
under consideration would be Monaragala substation located at the main road between Buttala and
Monaragala towns, 3km south from Hulandawa. (Lat: 6º 50’6.87”N / Lon: 81º18’54.97”E). The substation
is located around 20 km northwest from the Monaragala 1 site and 20 km from Monaragala 2 site.
Typsa has run the Sri Lanka’ grid model, kindly provided by CEB and found that the Short Circuit Power
at 132kV bus bar in Monaragala is around 750 MVA (see table).
It is possible to conclude then that a solar plant in the range of 100MW (and potentially more) in the
Monaragala region could be assumed to be feasible from the point of view of grid stability.
In March 2015, CEB has published a draft of a new Sri Lanka Grid Code. The latest revised version of
this code is dated August 2016. The document is in line with other modern grid codes found elsewhere in
the world. A complete review of the document will be done within the current assignment and presented
as a separate document (task ii within Phase 1A, according to the ToR). In this section, we provide a
summary of the grid access rules described in the latest version of the Grid Code document.
Section 3.17 of the code deals with the so-called “Special connection requirements for intermittent
resource based generating units”. The section would then apply to generation facilities based on both
solar resources.
The code requires this type of generation facilities to comply with the Power Factor ranges given in the
figure below
These requirements are in line with requirements found elsewhere and can be dealt with by modern
inverters.
The document indicates that it may be necessary for intermittent generators to limit the maximum rate at
which the power output changes about changes in the intermittent resource. Therefore, power ramp-up
rate shall be able to be limited. But the document does not seem to pose a comparable ramp down
control requirements on generators.
Curtailment request are described as possible, but there are no specific numbers to assess the possible
impact of this procedure.
In summary, the current grid code does not seem to pose especially onerous burdens on future solar
generators.
6. PRODUCTION STUDY
The southern part of Moneragala district appears to be among the areas in Sri Lanka with greater
irradiation values (see figure below).
Figure 6-2 Average monthly temperature for MN, SG and NASA databases
Ambient temperature values obtained from the three databases considered show a small dispersion
during the year. The difference between the databases varies with Solargis and Meteonorm aligned
during May to September period while Solargis is nearer NASA estimations on October, February and
March.
The sites under consideration show an annual average temperature of approximately 27ºC. This is a
relatively high temperature that will affect the performance of the PV plant. A note about Meteonorm lower
GHI value could be useful here. Meteornorm uses ground stations as a basic data source, and the only
ground measurements available at Sri Lanka is in Colombo some 179 km away. Thus satellite data are
considered as more reliable (such as Solargis).
Figure 6-3 Average monthly GHI for MN, SG, PVGIS and NASA databases
The yearly Global Horizontal Irradiation is around 2000 kWh/m2/year. This can be considered like a good
value.
Figure 6-4 Average monthly DHI for MN, SG, PVGIS and NASA databases
The Irradiation has a significant diffuse component, which would rule out the use of Concentrated Solar
Power (CSP) technology. Temperature values reach high values during the summer. This aspect
combined with the high diffuse component of the radiation suggest that the use of non-crystalline
modules, such Si thin film or CdTe panels should be explored as an alternative to the more traditional
crystalline Si modules. Another feature of the radiation and temperature profiles is that both stay high
along the year,
Based on the analysis above, we opt to take Solargis as our reference data base for the production
calculation. The data used in our production simulation is shown below.
The yearly Global Horizontal Irradiation is around 1980 Wh/m /year. This can be considered like a good
value. The Irradiation has a significant diffuse component (45%), which would rule out the use of
Concentrated Solar Power (CSP) technology. As it can be seen, temperature values reach high values
during the summer. This aspect combined with the high diffuse component of the radiation suggest that
the use of non-crystalline modules, such Si thin film or CdTe panels should be explored as an alternative
to the more traditional crystalline Si modules. Another feature of the radiation profile is that the Global
Irradiation is relatively high along the year,
To complete the meteorological analysis we have looked into the wind regimes at the sites. The selected
area seems to maximum winds of around 80 km/h. This value is compatible with the implementation of
horizontal single-axis trackers.
To estimate the energy production that could be derived from this meteorological scenario, our team have
run several plant models using the well-known PVsyst software (6.70 Version), The estimate has been
done using 2.6 MW blocks, arranged in four different configurations.(fix tilt and tracker, with crystalline-Si
and non-crystalline CdTe modules) as shown in the following table. The number of heq in a year is
provided as a convenient indicator of the productivity of each configuration:
Polycrystalline
Concept Si module
CdTe module
The results indicate that there would be little gain by using non-crystalline panels. This is a somewhat
unexpected result, given the relatively high average temperatures and high averaged diffuse component
of the radiation. Perhaps, this could be due to an uneven distribution of the diffuse radiation. In other
words, at Moneragala there could be some days with a very high component of diffuse radiation at which
the non-crystalline module would produce relatively more than X-Si modules; but a significant share of the
production would be coming from other days, with mostly clear skies where the crystalline modules would
do very well. The result is otherwise a convenient from a practical standpoint, as crystalline modules are
much more accessible in the market than amorphous modules.
Another interesting, but less surprising result is that tracker projects offer a much better yield, close to
19% higher for each type of module. This improvement has to be weighted against the slightly higher cost
of the tracker structures and, in the Moneragala case, the potential difficulties associated with the more
demanding tracker foundations. If a cost-effective foundation for trackers can be devised, once a proper
geotechnical survey is completed, we would recommend to go along with the tracker project.
The area under consideration seems to have different zones where sizeable PV plants could be erected.
At the same time, as described in sections above, the area involves patches of forest and rocky areas,
and this makes difficult finding one single extensive plot that could host a huge plant (e.g. 100MW ~ 200
ha). Furthermore, to reduce the environmental and social impact, it could be better to alternatively
implement a small collection of interconnected medium size plants (in the order of 30MW to 40MW). This
would create a more palatable footprint, allowing, for example, the creation of corridors that would permit
transit of wild species (e.g. elephants) and people.
Using this strategy, Typsa has looked for plots that appear to be especially flat and clear of vegetation.
The figure below depicts a tentative selection of plots that would host 30MW and 40MW PV plants. Yet,
the final selection of sites should be made after specific topographic and geotechnical information is
3
gathered .
3
The Forest Department indicated us during our visit that a digital topography of the area was available. However,
we have not been able to acquire this information, despite repeated requests.
For these layouts we have used a cost-efficient and state-of-the-art PV technology with polycrystalline
modules of around 17% of efficiency together with horizontal single axis tracker.
For the layout, we have applied large central inverter station of 5 MW although other solutions, as strings
inverter, could be also valid. This would not substantially change the occupation ratio.
The layout illustrated above shows one of the several ways in which the solar field can be conceived. For
the sake of completeness, Typsa has studied how the yield would vary if non-crystalline modules (such
as CdTe modules) were used and also what is the impact of using a one-axis tracker vs. the simpler
fixed-tilt system, please refer to section 6.2. to reviews the corresponding results.
The Monaragala substation provides an apparent readily available option to connect the Monaragala
solar generation. As described above (see section 5.2. ), the Monaragala substation currently offers
space for a new 132kV entry bay. Thus the apparent choice is to connect the new generation using this
attractive option. Also, our proposed layout (see section 7.1. ), involves having not just one solar field but
two or three interconnected fields. Our preliminary proposal would be to link the various fields by means
of 33kV lines, and merge all these lines into a step up substation to be located in the plot closest to the
Monaragala substation.
This approach would require only one step up substation and possibly just one step up transformer. The
following list of equipment would have to be included in the project, in case the solar field is split in three
separate plots:
• 2 x 2kms (for example, actual length depends on relative location of the plants) underground
cable at 33kV
• One 132 kV overhead line, 20 km estimated approximate length, two conductors per phase, on
lattice towers, zebra conductor and OPGW for fibre optics communications from PV plants to
Moneragala substation
These tentative interconnection infrastructures may be modified or adapted in a further design step due to
specific technical requirements of CEB or additional interconnection needs. A simplified single line
diagram could possibly clarify the proposed conceptual interconnection scheme:
Figure 7-1 Simplified SLD showing connection of the first phase solar field
8. FINANCIAL ANALYSIS
8.1. CAPEX
This section provides an approximation to the CAPEX and LCOE for an hypothetical 100MW to be
erected as three nearby 33.3 MW plants. The estimates have been derived using ratios observed in
4
similarly large international projects in which Typsa has been involved . The estimate does not capture
possible specificities derived from the Sri Lanka supply financial conditions, except in what refers to
interconnection infrastructure where indicative numbers provided by CEB have been used as a guidance.
CAPEX estimate for 2x50MW plants interconnect to the Moneragala substation. Million USD
120 MWp/100 MWac PV capacity mounted on single-axis trackers $90.7
2 switching centres at 33kV $0.6
1 132 kV overhead line, 20 km estimated length, two conductors per phase, on lattice
towers, zebra conductor and OPGW for fibre optics communications from PV plants $4.0
to Moneragala substation
TOTAL $100.2
To gather a first order of magnitude idea of the LCOE that could be derived from project at Moneragala, a
simplified financial model has been constructed. In computing the LCOE, parameters such as the
percentage of project financial leverage and the cost of borrowed capital might have a significant impact.
For Typsa it would be premature to speculate about the values that these parameters could take for the
Pooneryn project, as they would be dependent on the way the projects are structured and the roles that
IFC and other lenders and investors could take in the project. Consequently, our financial calculation has
assumed that the investment is all done upfront at the beginning of the project; and that there is no
financial leverage. As a result, the only running expense is the OPEX cost, as there would be no principal
or interest payments. The OPEX cost estimates have been obtained using ratios derived from previous
Typsa experience elsewhere and are not based on probing the local market.
With these considerations in mind, an LCOE in the range of $35.2 / MWh has been obtained.
4
For the PV estimates, we have used four recent projects in which Typsa has been involved and has got access to
the corresponding CAPEX break down. In particular, (i) a 33 MW PV plant in Burkina Faso (2017) (ii) a 10 MW PV
plant in Saudi Arabia (2018) (iii) a 18 MW PV plant in Mexico (2018) and (iv) a 80 MW PV plant in Argentina (2018).
The indicative figures provided are in line with some of the prices seen in the international arena for
similarly large projects. These prices will have to checked international and national IPP as they approach
the Sri Lankan market.
A final note should be added. CEB has indicated (please refer to section 5.2. that the 132kV lines to
Inginiyagala and Rantembe would have to be upgraded to support the energy export away from the
Monaragala node. The cost of these reinforcements is unknown, and one could think that it should not be
burdened on the solar projects, as it would represent a general improvement of the Sri Lanka’s electrical
grid that could maybe be supported by alternative funding sources.
A site evaluation effort of the sort addressed in this report seeks several results:
And, such an evaluation process needs and will involve technical considerations as well as environmental
and social considerations.
When several competing sites are involved, an approach sometimes undertaken is to use a numerical
evaluation method, i.e. a matrix of weighted aspects. Because the present edition of the document, just
refers to the Pooneryn site, we will only use a qualitative approach in our evaluation.
In a following, upcoming, edition of this document, the Monaragala sites will be included and the method
used will be expanded to include the weighting procedure as it would facilitate comparison among the
sites, communication and presentation of the results. Nevertheless, it might be already worth noticing that
using the weighted evaluation matrix does not void out the valuable subjective opinion, it simply makes
the site comparison easier.
The Monaragala evaluation matrix is shown below. Each of the aspects considered is commented, and
three step scale has been created to facilitate identification of potentially fatal flaws or critical elements.
The proposed evaluation steps are D for Difficult, A for Acceptable and G for Good
Aspect Comment D A G
General site condition. This refers to some general features of the The proposed sites are within a forest area that combines A
site, such as the existence of vegetation that would need to be high trees, high vegetation and rocky elevations along with
removed, or buildings or any sort of construction, and the potential clear and flat areas. Some of these flat areas are used for
existence of mandatory setbacks. This aspect include a consideration cultivation (Chena) and small orchard.
of the available surface at the site.
Land ownership. Is the land ownership clear? Does transfer of the The site belongs to the Forest Department. G
property rights look feasible within reasonable cost and time?
Topographic features. This refers to the topographic features of the The terrain is particular undulant at area 1 as there are A
site. A flat site is ideal for a solar plant. A non-flat site might require abundant small rocky prominences. Area 2 shows a more
grading works. regular terrain still with smaller prominences. All the area
has some hills up to 400 meter high. No large clear and
flat areas have been identified. A detail topographic map of
the area should be studied to more precisely identify
potential areas for further development.
Hydrological aspects. Hydrological aspects of the sites, such the The area is located between two main rivers Kumbukkan A
existence of water courses, water bodies, potential need for water Oya y Hoda Oya. The area is crossed with many water
related works. courses, in general, small. The drainage system must be
carefully studied to control the run-off after the heavy rains.
Geotechnical aspects. This aspect tries to capture a fairly preliminar Due to the risk shallow rocks and calcareous shallow D
evaluation of the site in relation to the potential ease or difficulty in layers, a more detail geotechnical survey and some
using conventional foundation. ramming tests in those final selected areas should be
performed.
Aspect Comment D A G
Meteorological aspects of the site. The electricity production of the The studied area shows an annual average temperature of G
sites is totally dependent, among other meteorological aspects, on approximately 27ºC and total annual irradiation of around
the amount of irradiance received, the % of this irradiance being 2000 kWh/m2/y. Maximum average wind speed is around
direct and the temperature. This aspect evaluates the quality of these 80 km/h. Meteorological conditions are good for production
data and asses the potential productivity of the site. based on solar irradiation.
Water supply issues. Is water available for maintenance No water supply although the area has different water A
operations? courses.
Shadow casting. This aspect evaluates whether production losses The area has spotted hills up to 400 meter high and areas A
can be expected from existing of future objects. with high vegetation.
Road access. Road access is an important aspect during The existing access to the investigated sites is poor. The D
construction. This aspect evaluates the adequacy of this aspect. last few kilometres for both site 1 and site 2 (approx.. 4 km)
are dirt roads that turn into muddy paths after during the
rainy season. It would be necessary to improve some of the
roads, including execution of some small bridges. An
alternative access from the West should be studied in
combination of the necessary route for the interconnection
line.
Existing utilities. If utilities infrastructure is present, this can affect It is an inhabited area with no infrastructures or services. G
the design and the available surface. So, the design is not affected.
Aspect Comment D A G
Interconnection infrastructure. This critical aspect tries to evaluate The planned point of interconnection is the Monaragala A
the ease or difficulty of the export interconnection. It involves substation located at the main road between Buttala and
evaluation of the potential Gen-Tie line and the receiving substation. Monaragala towns and around 18 km to the West from the
It might involve also consideration of grid stability issues. proposed area. It is necessary to execute a brand new 132
kV line. The rout will cross forest and urban areas. No
study of the potential route has been carried out yet.
Environmental protection. Is the site affected by any sort of The site selected for the project is designated as a forest A
protective figure, such national or regional park, or declared like a reserve. However, the area has been under heavy
valuable international resource? cultivation for many years and therefore does not qualify as
an forest reserve any further. The site lise in close
proximity to Kumbukkana Conservation Forest and
Ruhunaa and Kumana National Parks are also located
south of the project site. These protected areas will not be
directly or indirectly impacted by the proposed activities
Environmental vegetation aspects. Does the site has unique or Outside of the forest areas most of the potential plots for A
special vegetation that would be destroy and that can be not be easy usable for the project can be defined as lands abandoned
compensated? Is the site populated with native vegetation, and would after cultivation that is covered with invasive alien grass
its removal entail a significant loss?. species Panicum maximum. This habitat does not support
any critical species and therefore loss of habitat is not a
major concern.
Wildlife aspects. Does the site host species either on a permanent Since the site selected for the proposed project does not A
or transitory basis, that would be negatively affected by the support critical species it will not have a significant impact
development of the project? Can mitigation or compensatory on wildlife. However, it is strongly recommended that
measures be envisioned at this stage? relatively undisturbed riparian and rock outcrop associated
vegetation should not be disturbed during project
implementation as these small habitat patches are the only
Aspect Comment D A G
Social aspects. Are there any local dwellers on site? Are these Even though there are no permanent settlements if the A
legally stablished? Have they ben there for long? Have the acquired a area identified for development the area is used extensively
“de facto” right of us? Is it possible to imagine compensatory measure for seasonal cultivation under rain-fed irrigation. Therefore,
in case of displacement, within reasonable cost and time margins? the implementation of the project will result in a loss of
Could potential conflicts occur with local dwellers if a displacement livelihoods for these farmers. Once the plots are selected, a
occurs or in relation to the construction works? plan should be developed to convert these impact into
acceptable
TOTAL 2 10 3
A wide area to the south-east of the town of Monaragala has been studied as potential home to new
utility-scale PV capacity. The study area is situated between the high mountains at the western end and
the flatter terrain that covers the broad eastern and southern plain. It combines different geographic and
geological features and can be considered hilly, and steep but also as a rolling terrain in some areas
within an elevation range of 160 to 450 metres.
The study indicates that the area at large and the available interconnection could probably support a total
solar capacity around 100MW; maybe more. The topography, geotechnical and vegetation distribution
features in the area does not make easy to find one single large suitable plot to would host one very large
PV plant. Our team recommends that rather than considering one single site the objective PV capacity
could be reached by setting up in two or three plants so that adequate quality plots can be found and the
environmental and social footprints of the plant could be better managed.
The sites so chosen would offer attractive solar resources for renewable energy generation. The sites
would show as main environmental values, a varied vegetation landscape that includes grown-up trees,
and a transient elephant population. From the social perspective, the area is sparsely occupied, with very
small and isolated human settlements mostly devoted to the traditional Chena cultivation, which involves
temporary occupation of lands.
Typsa thinks that it is possible to find ways to develop adequately develop the Moneragala areas for
renewable energy in economically attractive terms while reducing the environmental impacts to
acceptable levels. To deal with the social, potential compensatory measure might be needed for
potentially affected dwellers. To safely deal with the transient elephant population, we recommend setting
up adequate wide free corridors and protecting the solar facilities with proper fencing.
As seen in this report, the nearby Monaragala substation offers very a convenient evacuation option for a
large PV plant. This substation is new and well maintained and has space readily available for a new
132kV entry bay. Under this approach, the various nearby PV plants would be interlinked using 33kV
lines (some few km long), and the plant closest to Monaragala would then host a 33/132kV step-up
substation, which would be connected with the Monaragala substation by means of a new aerial 132kV
line (estimated to be around 20km long).
The short circuit power estimated to be available at the Monaragala substation would indicate that the
node can accept the proposed 100MW of non-dispatchable solar energy. However, this discussion,
needs to be completed, in the future, with an in-depth analysis of the robustness of the grid at the point of
interconnection.
Also, it has been estimated that most of the energy that would be produced at the Moneragala sites,
would have to be exported away from the node, as the local demand seems to be low. To achieve this,
CEB has indicated that line reinforcements in the 132kV lines going to Inginiyagala and Rantembe will be
needed (the cost of these reinforcements has not been considered in the analysis)..
As a result, both interconnection and environmental criteria suggest that a sensible way to exploit the
excellent energy resources in the Monaragla region would be to launch a large solar project by merging
two or three solar medium scale solar plants..
As a summary, our team thinks that it is possible to develop a large utility-scale solar energy project in the
Monaragala Region, this would improve the energy supply in the area, in an economically attractive way;
and deploy the assets on the ground in a form that would be respectful to the existing environmental and
social situation in region..
REFERENCES
1 100% Electricity Generation Through Renewable Energy by 2050. Assessment of Sri Lanka’s
Power Sector. ADB UNDP Report (2017).
2 Minimum Short-Circuit Ratios for Grid Interconnection of Wind Farms with Induction
Generators, Romeu Reginatto and Carlos Rocha. The 8th Latin-American Congress on
electricity generation and transmission – 2009
3 New implication of short circuit analysis in assessing impact of renewable energy resources
on system strength of a power grid. A dissertation submitted to the graduate faculty in partial
fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of doctor of philosophy, Milad Javadi Norman,
Oklahoma 2017
4 Power System Voltage Stability, Carson W. Taylor, EPRI, International Editions 1994
6 Integrating InverterBased Resources into Weak Power Systems, North America Electric
Realiability Corporation, June 2017