Chief Justice Jayantha Jayasuriya today appointed a five-judge bench of Supreme Court to consider four petitions filed seeking annulment of the Cabinet decision to transfer 40% of the government-owned stake in the Kerawalapitiya Yugadanavi Thermal Power Plant to an American company, New Fortress Energy.
The full bench consists of Chief Justice Jayantha Jayasuriya and Supreme Court Justices Buwaneka Aluvihare, Priyantha Jayawardena, Vijith Malalgoda and L.T.B Dehideniya.
This was stated when the petitions were taken up before a three-judge bench comprising Justices Murdu Fernando, Gamini Amarasekera and Arjuna Obeysekera today.
The petitions are due to be heard before a five-judge bench on November 29.
The petitions have been filed by Colombo Archbishop Malcolm Cardinal Ranjith, Ven. Elle Gunawansa Thera, General Secretary of the Samagi Jana Balawega Ranjith Maddumabandara, Wasantha Samarasinghe and the Secretary of the Ceylon Electricity Board Ranjan Jayalal.
Additional Solicitor General Farzana Jameel, who represented the Attorney General and the Cabinet, had earlier requested that the petitions be referred to a full bench as they were filed on a matter of national importance.
Accordingly, the five-judge panel was appointed after the request was referred to the Chief Justice.
Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa including the Cabinet, Secretary to the Treasury, Secretary to the Ministry of Energy, Public Utilities Commission, Its Chairman, Ceylon Electricity Board, Its Chairman, Ceylon Petroleum Corporation, Its Managing Director, West Coast Power Pvt. Ltd., USA company - New Fortress Energy, Attorney General and 54 others are named as the respondents.
The petitions state that the Yugadanavi thermal power plant at Kerawalapitiya will supply 300 MW of electricity to the National Grid.
The power plant is owned by West Coast Power (Pvt) Ltd and 95% of its shares are owned by the Government of Sri Lanka.
The petition also states that its operations manager is West Coast Power Pvt.
The announcement was published through media that the Yugadanavi power plant is bidding internationally for a project to supply Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG). The Cabinet had on February 21 approved the selection of New Fortress Company in New York based on the highest bid submitted.
The agreement was signed on June 07. Under the agreement, it has agreed to sell 40 percent of the Sri Lankan Government-owned stake in West Coast Power for US$ 250 million to an American Company. The American company has agreed to supply LNG to the Yugadanavi and Kelanitissa power plants.
New Fortress, an American company, will have a monopoly on the supply of liquefied natural gas for power generation in Sri Lanka.
The petition seeks a ruling that the fundamental rights of the people of Sri Lanka have been violated as a result.
The petitioners seek an interim order restraining the Cabinet decision from taking effect and an interim preventing the transfer of 40% of the Yugadanavi Thermal Power Plant to the relevant American company until the conclusion of the hearing of this petition.
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