Sri Lanka's Supreme Court forms bench to hear petition against controversial US energy deal

Sri Lanka's Supreme Court on Friday named a five-member bench to hear the fundamental rights petitions challenging a controversial US energy deal signed by the government two months ago.

The petitions were filed by two Opposition parties -- the Archbishop of Colombo, Cardinal Malcolm Ranjith, and a Buddhist Monk, Elle Gunawansa -- who claimed that this deal endangers the country’s national and economic security, and hence it must be annulled.

With the appointment of the full bench, the case will now be taken up on November 29, the Supreme Court announced.

Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa and the cabinet of ministers have been marked as respondents in the petition.

In late September, the US-based New Fortress Energy had announced that it had struck a deal to supply the State-run Ceylon Electricity Board (CEB) 1.2 million gallons of liquefied natural gas a day through a 310 MW combined cycle power plant and another 700 MW of plants to be built in Kerawalapitiya.

According to the deal, New Fortress will initially provide the equivalent of an estimated 1.2 million gallons of LNG per day to the government. The petroleum trade unions alleged that the country stands to lose hundreds of millions of dollars through this liquefied natural gas (LNG) deal with the US firm which could be worth up to $6 billion. At least two ministers in the Cabinet have threatened to resign in their bid to stop the deal. They vowed to stop two more agreements that are due to be signed. They claimed the deal would create a monopoly in the hands of a foreign ownership and thereby endanger the island’s national security.

Last month, trade union protests erupted across the country against this deal. But Sri Lanka President Gotabaya Rajapaksa effectively quelled them by issuing a special gazette banning strikes by employees related to essential services.

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