Sri Lanka Electricity Act 2009 · As enacted · Part III · Modification and Enforcement of Licences
33. Modification without agreement
Official English translation. The Sinhala text prevails. Open the official Sinhala text, official PDF on documents.gov.lk
Official translationFrom Department of Government Printing, unchanged
Subject to the following provisions of this section, the Commission may modify the conditions of a generation, transmission or distribution licence, where the licensee does not consent to the modifications.
Before making any modifications under this section, the Commission shall investigate the following questions: -
whether any matters which relate to the generation, transmission (including the procurement and sale of electricity in bulk), distribution or supply of electricity under a licence, operate or may be expected to operate, against the public interest; and
if so, whether those matters could be remedied or prevented by modifying the conditions of the relevant licence, and thereafter provide a written report of the investigation to the Minister, who shall consider the report and any information given to him or her by the Commission, in order to advise the Commission whether or not to give effect to the proposed modifications.
In its report to the Minister, the Commission shall set out the following:—
the effects adverse to the public interest which it thinks the matters specified in the report have or may be expected to have; and
proposed modifications of the conditions of the relevant licence by which, in its opinion, those effects could be remedied or prevented.
The Commission may at any time by notice to the
Minister, revise the report provided under this section by adding to, or excluding matters from, such report.
To assist the Minister in the consideration of the report,
Commission shall give to the Minister—
any information the Commission has relating to matters within the scope of the investigation conducted by it and which the Minister requires or which the Commission thinks it would be appropriate for the Minister to have; and
any other assistance which the Commission is able to give in relation to matters within the scope of such investigation and which is requested by the
Minister.
As soon as practicable after preparing a report under this section, the Commission shall –
serve a copy of the report on the relevant licensee;
and
publish particulars of the report in such manner as it considers appropriate for bringing them to the attention of persons likely to be affected by them.
A licensee may within twenty days of service of a copy of the report on the licensee, make any representations to the
Minister which the Minister shall take into consideration in making his or her decision.
Within thirty five days of receiving the report under subsection (2), the Minister shall advise the Commission in writing, either to give effect to the proposed modifications, or as the case may require, not to give effect to the proposed modifications. Where the Minister advises the Commission to give effect to the proposed modifications, the Commission shall make such modifications to the conditions of the relevant licence as appear to the Commission to be necessary, for the purpose of remedying or preventing the effects adverse to the public interest which have been identified in the report.
The Minister shall when advising the Commission under subsection (8), state his or her reasons for his or her advice and shall have regard to the objectives set out in section 4.
The Commission shall send a copy of the Minister’s advice to the licensee to whom it relates and publish the advice in such manner, as it considers appropriate for bringing the advice to the attention of persons likely to be affected by it. As soon as practicable after making modifications under this section, the Commission shall send a copy of the modifications to the licensee and to the Minister.
A licensee shall have a right of appeal to the
Court of Appeal against any modifications made under this section.
The Supreme Court Rules relating to appeals to the
Supreme Court from the Court of Appeal or other court or tribunal (Rule 28 of the Supreme Court Rules of 1990 or such provision of law as would correspond to such Rule)
shall, mutatis mutandis, apply to and in respect of all matters connected with the filing, hearing and disposal of an appeal preferred under this section.