News & market updates

President Anura Dissanayake flagged off construction of a US$140mn, 100MW solar farm in Monaragala. The plant is expected to generate about 219 GWh/year (~25% capacity factor) on 500 acres, with 12 approvals secured over the past 6–9 months.

John Keells CG Auto (part of the John Keells group) says the Court of Appeal ordered the release of 991 of 997 BYD vehicles and later 506 additional BYD vehicles, with deliveries underway at the original prices. JKCG says it has provided required documentation, expects no significant delays, and is cooperating with authorities.

Sri Lanka completed the Habarana–Veyangoda transmission line, a Japan-funded project financed by a yen loan of about USD 65 million — the first yen-loan project finished since disbursements resumed — which increases grid capacity, reliability and reduces transmission losses/CO2.

John Keells CG Auto (part of John Keells) said the Court of Appeal ordered Sri Lanka Customs to release 506 BYD vehicles on 3 Sep (after 991 of 997 were ordered released on 7 Aug); vehicles are being delivered at the original prices and some have already been handed to customers.

Sri Lanka's renewable power share reached 73% in June, with renewables producing 1,091 GWh of a 1,495 GWh total. CEB hydro rose 33.8% to 626 GWh and private solar/wind/mini-hydro grew 28.7% to 413 GWh; CEB is advertising a grid-scale BESS and seeking synchronous condensers to manage intermittency.

Voyage Sri Lanka 2025 marine summit will be held on 16 October 2025 at The Kingsbury, with early-bird registration extended to 15 September for a 10% discount. Seylan Bank is the official banking partner and Lanka IOC and Hayleys Advantis are listed sponsors.

Hayleys Aventura, the industrial solutions arm of Hayleys Group, launched ASCENT 2030, an ESG roadmap to embed ESG across Industry Inputs and Power & Energy, building on a 50MW renewable portfolio (127 GWh/yr) and a new 4MW solar project.

WindForce PLC launched an Employee Share Option Scheme to issue up to 40,523,068 ordinary voting shares (3% of pre-ESOS issued shares), with the first tranche of 13,507,689 shares (1%) already granted. Shares vest in five tranches over five years for senior employees and exercise prices will be set by pre-grant VWAP.

Ethio Telecom and Huawei have commercially deployed Solar-on-Tower sites in Addis Ababa, providing up to four hours of solar power per site and reducing diesel generator use by 40% (from six to two hours). The tower-mounted PVs address urban space constraints and aim to accelerate green networks across Africa.

National Development Bank (NDB) launched the SME Re-Energizer Loan offering eligible MSMEs up to LKR 25 million at 7% p.a. with flexible repayments. The facility targets priority sectors including manufacturing, agriculture, tourism, exports, construction and supports investments like machinery and solar installations.

Sampath Bank PLC signed an MoU with Prime EV Automobiles to finance Deepal electric vehicles, offering a 0.5% p.a. interest-rate discount, interest-free two-month insurance loans and 0% interest 12-month credit-card instalments.

Hayleys Fentons, part of Hayleys PLC, won eight awards at the National Business Excellence Awards 2025, including Gold in the Infrastructure and Utilities sector for a third consecutive year. Several Hayleys Fentons subsidiaries also received awards, highlighting the group's sustainability and tech-led infrastructure capabilities.

Sri Lanka Customs detained about 1,000 BYD Atto 3s (and around another 1,000 vehicles) after complaints the models sold locally have lower motor outputs than in other markets. A committee will be appointed to test EV motor outputs and other makes may face the same tests.

John Keells Properties has partnered with PickMe to provide convenient (including free) transport for potential buyers to visit the VIMAN Ja-Ela site and Colombo sales office, improving accessibility for the residential project.

INSEE (Siam City Cement (Lanka) Limited) won three awards at the CIOB Sri Lankan Sustainability Awards 2025, including Sustainable Brand of the Year and Sustainable Cement Brand of the Year.

Lotus Hydro Power (HPFL.N0000) appointed Dr. Rohantha Athukorala as an Independent Non-Executive Director. Dr. Athukorala brings over 21 years' experience in brand marketing and leadership roles including Unilever, UNOPS and public sector appointments.

Areva Investments marked its 10th anniversary on 18 September, saying it has facilitated over Rs.81 billion in short-term funding and structured private debt deals for clients including L B Finance, Vallibel Finance, Browns Investments and Bogawantalawa Tea Estates.

Sri Lanka spent $506.1 million on personal vehicle imports up to July 2025 (up from $34.8 million a year earlier), with $162.2 million on commercial vehicles. Private credit has surged partly due to car loans, analysts warn rate cuts and inflationary policy could pressure reserves and the external sector; July dollar inflows were $2.6 billion.

Western Province Governor Hanif Yusoof launched trials of fully electric, solar-powered waste-collecting boats on Beira Lake, with the first vessels operational and each able to collect up to 3,000 kg of floating waste per day; up to four boats will be deployed in coming months.

The Global Dialogue Forum will host an international conclave on 20 September 2025 at the Galle Face Hotel in Colombo to explore practical AI applications in green energy, food security and cybersecurity.

Colombo market closed marginally up as the ASPI rose 0.2% (47 points) on turnover of Rs.7.46 bn while the S&P SL20 fell 0.2%. Dialog, Ambeon, Bukit Darah, Carson Cumberbatch and LOLC led gains, with EB Creasy, Sierra Cables, LVL Energy Fund and Raigam Wayamba also active and recording price gains.

The Federation of Chambers of Commerce and Industry of Sri Lanka hosts the Sri Lankan Entrepreneur of the Year Awards 2025 today at 5 p.m. at Cinnamon Life, marking the 25th SLEOTY and FCCISL's 50th anniversary to recognise entrepreneurs across tourism, exports, IT and renewable energy.

Global Dialogue Forum is hosting an international AI-focused conclave at the Galle Face Hotel in Colombo to explore AI applications in green energy, food security and cybersecurity. The event features government and corporate experts, including Sri Lanka's Deputy Minister of Digital Economy, and will be streamed live.

NIBM is launching Neo Ventures, a startup incubator that will select 50 Rising Founders from nearly 200 applicants and hold its first cohort launch on 28 August 2025 at the Neo Ventures Hub. The program provides mentorship, seed funding and industry partnerships with focus areas including fintech, edtech, green energy and AI.

Sri Lanka-China Business Council held its 24th AGM on 3 July, noting bilateral trade with China rose to $5.365 billion (30.4% y/y). Officials said China remains Sri Lanka’s largest FDI source and highlighted 15 cooperation agreements signed in January on infrastructure, green energy and tourism.

Lanka IOC (LIOC.N0000) appointed Anuj Jain as Chairman and Saumitra P. Srivastava and Rajesh Singh as Non-Executive Directors. Jain is currently Director (Finance) and CFO of IndianOil and has experience in finance, IT and renewable energy initiatives.

Dividend · Rs 0.80 · XD Sep 3, 2025

First Interim dividend of LKR 0.8/share; XD 2025-09-03; record 2025-09-03; payable 2025-09-23; FY 31st March 2026

Sri Lanka's Export Development Board held awareness sessions for agricultural and aquaculture exporters in the north western and central provinces, attended by over 50 participants to promote smart technologies such as solar-powered pumps, automated irrigation, IoT/AI monitoring, drones and transport data loggers.