Laos to build one of Southeast Asia’s largest wind power farms

Wind energy in Laos: IEA signs deal for largest Asean wind farm: Thai renewable energy company Impact Energy Asia (IEA) plans to build the largest wind farm in Asean – and generate 600 megawatts on 400,000 rai in southern Laos – under an agreement signed by the Lao government and the company . Called Monsoon Wind Farm, the US$1.5 billion [Bt50 billion] farm will be located near the Mekong River.

The wind power project will be turned over to the Lao government after a 25-year concession. The wind farm covers two districts: Dak Cheung in Sekong province and Sanxay in Attapeu province. The governor of Attapeu Dr Nam Viyaked also witnessed the signing. Monsoon Wind is due to deliver its payload in 2019. It will be built on land where 4,000 people live in six scattered villages.

The wind farm does not encroach on arable land or harm the environment, an IEA engineer said. “It will not disrupt the lives of people. About 95 per cent of the power is expected to be sold to Asean markets, mainly to Thailand and buyers bordering the Mekong. The project is also crit ical to Thailand’s energy needs. In the next 10 years, local production of natural gas and LNG will be depleted and much of our LNG needs will have to be imported to replace local demand,” IEA executive Somboon Lertsuwannaroj said.

The project will also play a key role in the Asean Power Grid Policy to sell power from Laos via Thai and Malaysia grids to Singapore, which has pledged to buy Lao power.

The Monsoon Wind farm hopes to generate over 1,500 million units of power annually and avoid an estimated 750,0000 tonnes of carbon emissions that would be generated by a coal plant. The project is also expected to spur the building of needed infrastructure like roads, bridges, telecommunications and power grids in Laos, including improved roads to Vietnam and Thailand.