CEB Profits Plunge amid Tariff Cuts and Rising Costs
- CNL Reporter
- August 18, 2025
- News
- CEB
- 0 Comments
Sri Lanka’s state-run Ceylon Electricity Board (CEB) reported a sharp drop in profits for the June 2025 quarter, earning 5.31 billion rupees compared to 34 billion rupees a year earlier, following two tariff reductions.
Quarterly revenues fell 33 percent year-on-year to 98 billion rupees, while cost of sales decreased 16 percent to 91.6 billion rupees, resulting in gross profits of 7.0 billion rupees, down 81 percent from the previous year.
Compared to the March quarter, revenues rose from 93 to 98 billion rupees in June, while costs fell from 112 to 92 billion rupees, generating gross profits of 11 billion rupees versus an 18 billion rupee loss in March. The March quarter, typically the driest, saw higher reliance on costly thermal generation.
CEB posted a six-month loss of 13.1 billion rupees, driven largely by the March quarter’s 18 billion rupee deficit. At group level, profits were 7.4 billion rupees in June, with a six-month loss of 9.5 billion rupees.
The utility’s losses followed regulator-mandated price cuts, which it had not requested, later partially reversed after IMF program delays. CEB continues to carry substantial short-term borrowings to cover losses caused by rupee depreciation and politically constrained tariff adjustments. Full effects of the June 12 tariff hike are expected in the September quarter.
