Laos to boost hydro-electricity output by a quarter
Play
Vientiane - Laos plans to boost electricity output by 26 per cent next year, state media reported Thursday.
According to the Ministry of Planning, the completion of four new dams by the end of 2012 should boost the country's electricity output by 664 megawatts, the Vientiane Times reported.
Laos currently has 17 operational hydropower plants with a power production capacity of about 2,560 megawatts.
The land-locked country exports an estimated 64 per cent of its electricity to neighbouring Thailand, but imports electricity from Thailand, China and Vietnam to meet its domestic needs.
The government says it hopes to end electricity imports by 2015.
About 78 per cent of households in Laos have access to electricity.//DPA
