Energy
New dam on Mekong looms
Representatives from Cambodia, Laos, Thailand and Vietnam gathered in Vientiane on Thursday to launch a six-month consultation process on what would be the third mainstream hydropower dam in Laos’s Lower Mekong River. Laos first signalled its intention to move ahead with the proposed 912-megawatt Pak ...
Deconstructing China’s energy security strategy
Given continued American global naval supremacy, which is unlikely to be challenged successfully in the foreseeable future, Beijing’s highest strategic priority is to ensure energy security by connecting friendly major oil and gas producers to China via pipelines transiting through land routes beyond the effective ...
The Dammed Don: Lao hydropower project pushes ahead despite alarm from scientists
Snaking down the length of the Mekong River the beautifully detailed map looks strikingly like those marking the distribution of unexploded ordnance in Laos. The red dots that pockmark the course of the river, from its origins in the highlands of China to its outlet ...
Battambang dam 98 percent complete
Construction of a $100 million dam project and the largest reservoir in Battambang province is 98 percent complete and scheduled to be finished before Khmer New Year in April. The Battambang Multipurpose Dam, located in Ratanak Mondul district’s Plov Meas commune, has dikes connecting one mountain ...
Policymakers to decide Krabi plant fate
Energy policymakers will make a final decision on Feb 17 about whether the government will proceed with a plan to build a coal-fired power plant in the southern city of Krabi, says the Electricity Generating Authority of Thailand. Egat governor Kornrasit Pakchotanon said the National ...
Lao energy not so ‘cheap’: experts
During a visit to the Lao border on January 10, Prime Minister Hun Sen thanked the government of Laos for “selling electricity at a cheap price to Cambodia”. Experts, however contend a continued reliance on energy imports means prices will invariably remain high for consumers. ...
Coal piles up as VN firms prefer imports
According to statistics from the General Customs Department, as of December 15 Viet Nam had imported a total 13 million tonnes of coal worth US$860 million during the year, more than four times the targeted 3 million tonnes. Why did coal purchases increase so sharply? ...
Power projects mired in land-use discord
Several contentious issues are dogging implementation of key projects managed by the Southern Power Management Board, contradictory regulations and land evaluation and compensation rules that residents are not ready to accept. The board currently manages investments in 79 power projects that are designed to meet ...
Import ban on petrol aims at plugging leaks
Cambodia will prohibit land-based imports of refined petroleum products from January 1 to eliminate smuggling along the country’s borders and improve the efficiency of customs revenue collection, officials said on December 29. According to the General Department of Customs and Excise, which announced the ban ...
Dolphin deaths slowing
The critically endangered Irrawaddy dolphin’s population in the Mekong is “stabilising”, the World Wildlife Fund said on December 27. With the sighting of 10 new dolphin calves and six reported deaths in the past year, 2016 saw a 30 percent drop in the mortality rate ...