Energy
Electricity production
Dammed, doomed: the Mekong Delta story
People await life-giving floods to return the delta to its former glory. The wait is futile. Keep reading ...
Laos announces fourth Mekong dam amid fears of ecological disaster
The Mekong River Commission (MRC) announced yesterday that Laos has formally notified the Commission of its intention to construct the Pak Lay dam on the mainstream of the Mekong River. The notification triggers commencement of the Prior Consultation procedure under the MRC’s Procedures for Notification, ...
Lao PDR Submits Notification on the Pak Lay Hydropower Project to MRC for Prior Consultation
The Mekong River Commission Secretariat has received an official notification from the Lao Government that it will undertake the formal process of prior consultation on its Pak Lay hydropower project in the Pak Lay area in the Lao PDR’s northern province of Xayaburi. The run-of-river ...
Thailand’s Energy Review Delays Launch of Controversial Mekong Dam
A major energy review by Thailand has delayed the launch of a controversial dam on the Mekong. This could lead to further questions about future hydropower projects along the river. The Chinese-backed Pak Beng dam in Laos was supposed to be the third dam under construction ...
The hidden costs of hydropower
Hydropower is one of Southeast Asia’s biggest renewable energy sources, however, many still remain oblivious to the damaging side-effects of hydropower projects. According to the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA), hydropower capacity in the region grew almost threefold from 16 GW to 44 GW between ...
China eyes role as world’s power supplier
Deep in a tangle of planning bureaucracies in western Beijing, the future of a country nearly 3,000km away is under discussion. Xie Qiuye, president of China’s Electric Power Planning & Engineering Institute, has been charged with developing an electricity plan for Laos, a nation struggling ...
Hydropower in Cambodia could threaten food security of region
Farmers and anglers in Cambodia depend on the Mekong River’s predictable seasonal patterns, but new dams for hydroelectricity are altering the hydrology of the river. These changes have the potential to threaten fish migration, livelihoods, and regional food security. Keep reading ...
New dam in Cambodia 'would destroy Mekong'
A Chinese-backed plan for Cambodia to build the Mekong River’s biggest dam would destroy fisheries that feed millions and worsen tensions with Vietnam, the downstream country with most to lose from dams on the waterway, according to a three-year study commissioned by the Cambodian government. Keep ...
Leaked report warns Cambodia's biggest dam could 'literally kill' Mekong river
A Chinese-backed plan to build Cambodia’s biggest dam could “literally kill” the Mekong river, according to a confidential assessment seen by the Guardian which says that the proposed site at Sambor is the “worst possible place” for hydropower. Keep reading ...
Hydro dam battle taking on new allies
As resistance mounts to hydroelectric dam projects along the Mekong River, local leaders have tried to engage civic movements in the Mekong sub-region in the battle. The latest group to emerge is the Transborder News Network, which held a forum on dam project investments and ...
