Xekong dam set to power up this week
Xekong dam set to power up this week
The government-owned Houay Lamphan Gnai hydropower plant will officially start commercial operation on Saturday in Thataeng district, Xekong province, after over four years in construction.
“We finished construction and started testing energy generation on September 3, two months ahead of schedule,” Electricite du Laos (EDL)'s Power Plant Development Department Deputy Director, Mr Vongsakoun Yingyong, said yesterday.
The dam will generate electricity for the national power grid for supply to the southern provinces, where the demand for power is increasing rapidly.
Mr Vongsakoun said electricity will also be sold to Thailand and Cambodia.
The dam has a capacity of 88MW and will generate 480 million kWh per year. The powerhouse is equipped with two sets of impulse turbines of 44MW each.
EDL ploughed about 1.68 trillion kip (US$206 million) into the hydro plant through a loan from China's Exim bank. The loan is to be repaid within 15 years after the dam becomes operational.
The project contractor is the China Gezhouba Group Company Limited.
The Lao government intends to use the profits from hydropower sales to fight poverty.
In recent years, the energy sector has played a part in social development, notably in the fields of education, human resources, health care, and job creation.
Twenty-seven power plants are currently operational with an installed capacity of about 3,304MW, including 11 plants that have an installed capacity of 405MW which are operated by EDL.
The 16 other plants, which have a combined installed capacity of 2,899MW, are operated by independent power producers.
Laos is aiming for total installed capacity of about 12,000MW by 2025, the Ministry of Energy and Mines said.
The abundant resources of the Mekong River and its tributaries give Laos the potential to produce more than 25,000MW of electricity.
