Sri Lanka national power grid down,lightning blamed

COLOMBO, Nov 15 (Reuters) Sri Lanka's national electricity grid went down today night, probably because of a lightning strike, a state electricity company official said.

Colombo hotels, shops and private residences turned to diesel generators where they could, but most of the capital was in darkness.

''A big (power) line has tripped, we think because of lightning,'' Ceylon Electricity Board General Manager Ranjit Palleperuma told Reuters. ''It is not an infrastructure problem.'' There are around 25 electricity generation plants in Sri Lanka, but if one of the main power lines trips, the whole system shuts down.

Much of Sri Lanka's infrastructure, from roads to hospitals, has been neglected by successive governments focused on a two-decade civil war against Tamil Tiger rebels.

President Mahinda Rajapakse is expected to announce a sharp increase in infrastructure spending in his 2007 budget due tomorrow.

REUTERS SY VV2239