China, Myanmar, Thailand Study $10 Billion Hydro Dam

[CrazyExpat]

Nov. 16 (Bloomberg) -- China, Myanmar and Thailand agreed to study a $10 billion hydropower project that would be Southeast Asia’s largest by generation capacity, the Chinese government said.

The 7-gigawatt project would be built on the Salween River in Myanmar over 15 years, China’s State-owned Assets Supervision and Administration Commission said in a statement on its website today. Companies from the three countries signed an accord on the project on Nov. 10, according to the statement.

China, the world’s largest energy consumer, is planning to add hydropower capacity in its southern provinces such as Yunnan and help build hydro dams in neighboring countries including Myanmar, Laos and Cambodia to meet demand from the region. The Asian Development Bank in September raised its 2010 economic growth forecast for Asia, excluding Japan, to 8.2 percent.

“Asia’s power demand is set to rise with the economy, and Chinese developers are keen to tap the rich hydro resources in Southeast Asia to fuel regional growth,” said Dave Dai, a Hong Kong-based analyst at Daiwa Securities Capital Markets Co.

China Three Gorges Corp., Sinohydro Corp. and China Southern Power Grid Co. will work with the Electricity Generating Authority of Thailand and the International Group of Entrepreneur Co. in Myanmar on the study, according to the statement.

From its headwaters in the Tibetan plateau, the 2,800- kilometer (1,740-mile) Salween traverses Yunnan and Myanmar before emptying into the Andaman Sea. The river is known as Nu Jiang in China.

http://www.businessweek.com/news/2010-11-16/china-myanmar-thailand-study-10-billion-hydro-dam.html