Chinadialogue.net
Plans for wind power from Chinese firm fall apart in Myanmar
Residents of Chaung Tha, a holiday resort and village on the Bay of Bengal, are still relying on diesel generators to get them through electricity blackouts more than four years after Myanmar’s government gave a Chinese company the go-ahead to build a wind farm nearby. Shortly ...
Kyaw Ye Lynn
Will Vietnam’s new energy policy mark a turning point for coal?
Vietnam’s government faces crucial choices as it draws up a new national energy plan for 2021-2030. Due to be published this summer, the Power Development Plan 8 will provide a vision for power supply up to 2045. Experts are hoping that Vietnam will use the ...
Michael Tatarski
Loss of faith along the Ou river
I sat alongside the Ou river listening to the waves lap against the half-submerged Lat Tha Hae temple in Luang Prabang province, northern Laos. Grandpa Un paused from sweeping his riverside yard and spoke to me in a strong voice. “I was born here,” the ...
Ton Ka
New oil pipeline in northern Thailand may worsen flooding
A pipeline stretching from central to north-east Thailand promises to “promote Thailand as an energy hub in the region” and “increase energy security”, according to the Ministry of Energy. Construction began in mid-2019, despite local communities objecting that the largely Chinese-financed project could worsen flooding ...
In Cambodia, solar power surges
One hour west of Cambodia’s capital an array of iridescent panels stretches between palm trees, glistening through dust clouds from a neighbouring highway. A year ago it was a barren expanse of chalky soil. Now it’s Cambodia’s largest solar farm. The joint Cambodian-Chinese project, which came ...
Southeast Asia turning away from coal power
Countries in Southeast Asia are building fewer coal-fired plants than expected as lenders distance themselves from the polluting technology. A new report from Global Energy Monitor (GEM) finds that new coal capacity has fallen sharply from a peak of almost 13 gigawatts (GW) in 2016 to ...
Christopher Davy
Mekong record low raises hydropower questions
An elderly fisherman anchored his small boat to the bank of the Mekong in north-eastern Thailand. Inside lay his morning catch of three fat barbs. “We can catch plenty of fish,” said Thong-in Wenkham with a thin smile, “It’s easy for us when the water level is low like this. “I ...
Pratch Rujivanarom
China’s potash demand stirs resistance in rural Thailand
The future of a potash mine planned for north-eastern Thailand is mired in uncertainty as villagers put up fierce opposition, fuelled by concerns about their livelihoods, health and environment. Last year a group led by local women blocked access to exploratory drilling sites in the Wanon ...
Yodsapon Kerdviboon, Visarut Sankham
Review: Last Days of the Mighty Mekong
The Mekong is the world’s 12th-longest river, second only to the Amazon in terms of biodiversity importance, and the world’s most productive inland fishery. It is also a transboundary river – rising from the glaciers of the Tibetan Plateau, in China, before tumbling down through ...
Chinese company consults locals over Mekong blasting
Communities say the company hasn’t considered the social and environmental impacts of proposed changes to the river, reports Andrew Stone. Keep reading ...