Srilanka, Feb. 11 -- If a countrywide power outage occurred and took longer to restore, the primary cause of both recent and past islandwide blackouts would be the failure of the country's three coal power plants, energy expert, advisor and former member of the Renewable Energy Ministry, Asoka Abeygunawardana said.

While refuting claims by the CEB engineers, he said that rooftop solar power users cannot be blamed, as they contribute energy to the main grid.

The islandwide blackout occurred due to an issue on the demand side of the Ceylon Electricity Board (CEB) and the failure to take necessary precautions to prevent it, he added.

"The first coal power plant proposal was made in 1990. Coal power plants were established as a result of ...