Four hydropower plants to start operation this year
Vientiane Times, 10 Feb 2010
Four new hydropower plants will start commercial operation this year, giving a major boost to Lao economic growth.
Senior officials at the Ministry of Energy and Mines said yesterday construction of the Nam Ngum 2 and Nam Lik 1-2 hydropower plants in Vientiane province, the Nam Nhone plant in Luang Namtha and Bokeo provinces, and the Nam Theun 2 plant in Khammuan province was well under way and electricity generation and sale was envisaged this year.
Commercial operation of the 250MW Xekaman 3 hydropower plant in the southern province of Xekong , which was scheduled to begin this year, has been postponed until 2011, the officials said.
According to the Ministry of Energy and Mines, the Nam Ngum 2 hydropower plant has installed electricity generating capacity of 615MW. The plant is expected to generate 2,300 GWh per year, all of which will be exported to Thailand .
The Nam Lik 1-2 hydropower plant has installed electricity generating capacity of 100MW and will be able to generate 435 GWh per year. All of the electricity produced by the plant will be supplied to the domestic market.
The Nam Nhone hydropower plant has installed electricity generating capacity of 2.4MW. It is the first small power plant project, and is being jointly developed by Lao and French private investors. The plant will supply the Electricite du Laos grid in Bokeo province in northern Laos .
Nam Theun 2 is one of the largest hydropower plants in Laos with installed electricity generating capacity of about 1088MW. The plant will supply electricity to both domestic and Thai markets and will generate revenue of about US$270 million per year.
Another hydropower plant under construction is the Nam Ngum 5 in Vientiane and Xieng Khuang provinces. The plant will have a power capacity of 120MW and is scheduled to start commercial operation in 2011.
The Theun Hinboun power plant expansion will be completed in 2012 and will increase generating capacity from 220MW to 280MW, with Laos and Thailand to be the major markets.
International financial institutions such as the Asian Development Bank predict Lao economic growth will remain strong until 2012 with the hydropower and mining sectors being the driving force.
At present there are 17 power plants in the planning stage, including a 1,260MW hydropower plant in Luang Prabang and Xayaboury provinces. Another 45 hydropower plants are undergoing feasibility studies.
It is the policy of the government to develop Laos as the “battery of Asean”. The government has signed memorandums of understanding to provide 7,000MW of energy to Thailand after 2015, and 3,000MW to Vietnam from now until 2020.
Representatives of the energy sector in Laos and Cambodia have signed a purchase agreement for the supply of about 5MW by the end of 2009.
According to the Ministry of Planning and Investment, the power sector has been the main driver of the Lao economy over the past decade. Investment in the sector has reached about US$4.1 billion since 2001.
VIENTIANE, Feb 17 (Bernama) -- Laos plans to put four hydro-power plants into operation this year, thus accelerating economic growth of the country, Vietnam news agency cited the Ministry of Energy and Mining as saying on Tuesday.
In an effort to become a major electricity producer of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), the Lao government signed numerous memoranda of understanding to supply electricity for Vietnam, Thailand and Cambodia.
The four hydro power plants are the 615MW Nam Ngum 2 plant, the 100MW Nam Lik 1-2 plant in Vientiane province, the 2.4MW Nam Nhon plant in Luang Namtha and Bo Keo provinces, and the 2.4MW Nam Theun 2 plant in Khammuone province.
The land-locked country is also developing other hydro-power plants, including the US$232 million Vietnamese-invested Sekaman 3 plant with a capacity of 210 MW in Sekong province, and the 1,410MW plant in Luang Prabang province which is invested with US$2 billion by the PetroVietnam Power.
Laos is planning 17 hydro-power plants and conducting feasibility study for 45 others.
The country has invested some US$4.1 billion in electricity sector since 2001.
