Electricity production
Hydropower dams
Global hydropower boom will add to climate change
From the Amazon Basin to boreal forests, and from the Mekong to the Himalayan foothills, rivers worldwide are being targeted for major new dams in a global hydropower boom that also aims to supply drinking water to exploding human populations and to facilitate navigation on ...
Pak Beng inquiry sought
Environment Ministry official Eang Sophalleth said on February 20 that he has made a request to the Mekong River Commission that Laos adequately investigate the potential impacts of the proposed Pak Beng hydropower dam ahead of a meeting this week. State news agency AKP on February ...
Concerns accounted for in Xayaboury hydropower development, EU told
All concerns have been taken into account in the development of the Xayaboury run-off-river hydropower plant the project developer recently relayed to European Union Ambassador to Laos, Leon Paul Faber. The ambassador, who took office in September last year, and his delegates visited the construction ...
New era of big dam building on the Mekong?
More than 50 years have passed since Australian engineers from the Snowy Hydroelectric Authority did site studies for the huge Sambor Dam on the Mekong River in Cambodia, but the mega project is now back on the drawing board. The Cambodian Government has signalled it ...
Cabinet approves power projects
The Cabinet of ministers approved on February 17 two electricity development projects in a bid to address the increasing demand for electricity in the kingdom. The two projects will be a 230-kilowatt transit grid development project from the Ta Tei dam in Koh Kong province as well ...
Striking a balance between conservation and development at the heart of Mekong struggle
Depending on who you speak to, there are naturally differing perspectives in regard to the future of the Mekong River, as most people living along the river look for a sustainable future through conservation of the existing ecosystem, while governments seek balanced resource usage and benefit-sharing ...
Longer wait for final word on Myitsone dam project
The struggle goes on over whether the controversial Myitsone dam and other hydropower projects along the Ayeyarwady River should be built, following indications that further reports on the projects are needed. A member of the commission for reviewing and scrutinising hydropower projects along the Ayeyarwady ...
Proposed hydropower plant in Laos to affect lower Mekong River in Vietnam
Laos is making hectic preparations for the building of one more hydropower dam – Pak Beng – on the Mekong river section which runs through Oudomxay province, despite strong warnings about the influence on the lower course, especially in Vietnam’s Mekong River Delta. The Mekong ...
Pak Beng Hydropower project looks set to move forward
The construction of the Pak Beng Hydropower Project is expected to begin at the end of this year after reaching agreement among Lower Mekong countries. A group of technical officials from the Ministry of Energy and Mines, Lao National Mekong Committee Secretariat and media organisations ...
ASEAN energy cooperation: the only way to prevent ‘lights out’ in the region
The countries comprising Southeast Asia have witnessed steady economic growth and improving living standards since the Asian Financial Crisis. Having weathered the global fiscal and financial crisis better than most other parts of the world, Southeast Asia has become the third-fastest growing region in the ...
