Phnompenh Post
Private equity firm casts net on Mekong region
A new private equity firm based in Phnom Penh is scouring the Mekong region for opportunities after making its first investment in the parent company of a leading Cambodian online real estate portal. []Alex Odom, the firm’s chief investment officer, said the economies in this region ...
Cam McGrath
Cambodia’s democracy, economy at risk: report
Cambodia has become more autocratic and its government’s claim of stable economic development rests on uncertain basis, according to a comprehensive new report. The Bertelsmann Stiftung’s Transformation Index (BTI), published on Thursday, claims that the quality of Cambodia’s democracy, market economy and governance performance has ...
Leonie Kijewski
Over 600 endangered turtle eggs found along Mekong River
Conservationists have found 20 nests of the critically endangered Asian Giant Softshell Turtle, containing a total of 663 eggs, in Mekong River sandbars in Kratie province, the Wildlife Conservation Society announced on Wednesday. Keep reading ...
Alessandro Marazzi Sassoon
Thais weigh merit of Mekong dam
Environmental watchdogs expressed hope on Wednesday that the Thai government’s announcement that it will delay a decision to purchase power from the controversial planned Pak Beng Dam could signal a shift in the country – and possibly the region – towards renewable energy. Keep reading ...
Andrew Nachemson
Before and after satellite images show extent of Sesan dam impact
Satellite imagery published by NASA on Saturday reveals the extent of flooding caused by the Lower Sesan II hydropower dam, and the change in the landscape in just one year. “The Operational Land Imagery (OLI) on the Landsat 8 satellite captured these before and after natural-color ...
Alessandro Marazzi Sassoon
River Festival comes close to capital for first time
For the first time in four years the annual Mekong River Festival and multi-sport gala, a celebratory event to pay tribute to Asia’s seventh longest river, is to be held within easy distance of Phnom Penh. Running from March 9-11, the fourth edition of the ...
H S Manjunath
New Mekong guidelines lacking, government official says
A Cambodian representative to the Mekong River Commission (MRC) said yesterday that new guidelines for hydropower development agreed to late last month don’t fully address threats to the health of the imperiled waterway. Keep reading ...
Alessandro Marazzi Sassoon
Mekong River Commission to revise dam guidelines
Hydropower developers and representatives of the Mekong River Commission member countries met last week for the last time before finalising guidelines to mitigate the negative impacts of dam construction on the Mekong River, though conservationists expressed doubts about whether such guidelines would make a difference. Keep ...
Alessandro Marazzi Sassoon
Enhancing regional water cooperation
Water management in the Mekong region is, in practice, dominated by energy objectives. In Cambodia, the priority is to substitute domestically produced hydropower for expensive diesel and electricity imports. In Laos, the priority is to generate revenue by drawing in foreign investment in dams and ...
PhnomPenh Post Reporters
Mining exploration set for region home to endangered river dolphins
Australian mining firm Medusa Mining has announced plans to begin exploration for gold, copper and oil in Kratie province’s Prek Kampi commune, about 35 kilometres west of a stretch of the Mekong River that is home to endangered river dolphins.Keep reading ...
Robin Spiess & Brendan O’Byrne