Electricity production
Hydropower dams
Thousands of Protesters Call For Termination of Dam Project in Myanmar’s Kachin State
About 10,000 people in northern Myanmar’s Kachin state staged a massive protest Thursday against the controversial Chinese-backed Myitsone Dam and recent calls by China for the suspended project to resume. Kachin activists, leaders from Kachin political parties, religious leaders, local civil society groups, Buddhist monks, ...
Are Cambodia’s hydropower plans risky?
Along with most Southeast Asian countries, Cambodia’s electricity consumption over the past decade has skyrocketed. In a report by the World Wildlife Fund (WWF), electricity consumption in Cambodia has been growing rapidly, averaging 20 percent growth per annum since 2010. This rate continues to accelerate ...
Myanmar official suggests downsizing or relocation of dam that frayed China ties
A top Myanmar investment official on Tuesday (Jan 29) suggested alternatives such as scaling back or relocating a stalled Chinese-backed dam project that has strained ties between the neighbours. Myanmar angered China in 2011 when its former quasi-civilian government suspended the US$3.6 billion Myitsone hydro-power ...
Victims of Xe Pian-Xe Namnoy dam collapse in Laos languish in shelters as aid, supplies dry up
Even six months after the collapse of the Xe Pian-Xe Namnoy hydropower dam, which washed away numerous homes in southern Laos, the victims are still having to live in temporary shelters with no certainty about their future. The camp residents are suffering from a severe ...
Kachin parties refute China’s claim of local support for Myitsone Dam
Three ethnic Kachin political parties said on Monday they sought the “permanent suspension” of the multi-billion dollar Myitsone Dam, discrediting a Chinese embassy statement that implied support for the divisive project among the state’s political leaders. Keep reading ...
Laos urged to conduct impact studies
Member countries of the Mekong River Commission have sent a request to the Lao government to carry out thorough impact studies prior to the construction of the Pak Lay hydropower dam in order to minimise risks in the future. Keep reading ...
It’s decision time for Southeast Asia as power demand soars
Southeast Asia’s energy demand is expected to grow by two-thirds by 2040, requiring massive investment in new energy generation and transmission. Installed capacity will double from 240 gigawatts to 565 gigawatts, which amounts to adding a bit more than Japan’s total electricity capacity. Keep reading ...
Environmental damage continues months after Laos dam collapse
IN July, a hydroelectric dam collapse in Laos released five billion cubic meters of water into surrounding countryside – the equivalent of two million Olympic swimming pools. The resulting flood killed dozens, devastated communities, forced thousands to flee and ripped through areas of protected rainforest. The ...
Dams threaten traditional way of life in Mekong Basin
Sak Siam, 69, chief of Chnok Tru, a village in central Cambodia, is worried. The floating village of about 1,700 households is located on a tributary of the Mekong River. “The villagers will be unable to survive if the fish catch decreases further,” he said. Hydroelectric ...
Best of 2018: Disaster after disaster on the Mekong
From sea to source, the Mekong River stretches nearly 5,000 km through six countries. More than 60 million people depend on its waters for survival, and it is second only to the Amazon in its biodiversity. Photographers Gareth Bright and Luke Forsyth spent eighteen months travelling ...
