KPL
(KPL) Hongsa Power Company, the developer of the US$3.7-billion Hongsa Mine Mouth Power Project in Xayaboury Province, has begun the operation of its 2nd power generator with a 626-megawatt capacity.
Some 596 megawatts of electricity generated by the second generator will be solely exported to the Electricity Generating Authority of Thailand (EGAT) through a 500-kilovolt power grid system stretching over 67 km.
US$3.7-billion Hongsa Mine Mouth Power Project in Xayaboury
Singkham
(KPL) Hongsa Power Company, the developer of the US$3.7-billion Hongsa Mine Mouth Power Project in Xayaboury Province, has begun the operation of its 2nd power generator with a 626-megawatt capacity.
Some 596 megawatts of electricity generated by the second generator will be solely exported to the Electricity Generating Authority of Thailand (EGAT) through a 500-kilovolt power grid system stretching over 67 km.
The remaining amount of generated power, 30 megawatts, will be sold to Electricite Du Laos through a 115-kilovolt power grid system for domestic consumption.
An official ceremony signifying the launch of the operation of the second generator took place at the plant on Monday in the presence of members of the Hongsa Power Company Board of Directors and the relevant officials.
Around 680 tonnes of lignite are reportedly burned every hour by each generator of the power plant to generate electric current.
The Hongsa Mine Mouth Power Plant comprises three 626-megawatt generators.
The first power generator was officially put into operation in June of this year and the third one is expected to begin generating in March of next year.
The power from the first and second generator is being exported to Thailand in accordance with the Power Purchase Agreement between the Hongsa Power Company and EGAT.
In 2007, the two governments of Laos and Thailand signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to sell 7,000 megawatts of electric power to Thailand by 2015.
The Hongsa Mine Mount Power Project is the biggest thermal power plant in the country.
The development project is to bring to fruition the Party and Government’s guidelines, especially those for modernization and industrialization.
The project is located in Hongsa and Ngeun districts of Xayaboury Province. The project comprises a lignite-fired power plant, a lignite mine, a limestone mine, and supporting infrastructure.
On 30 Nov 2009, the Hongsa Power Company signed a concession agreement with the government of the Lao PDR to develop and operate the power plant and mines.
Under the agreement, 1,473 megawatts of electricity (total capacity = 1,878 megawatts) will be sold to EGAT at the Thai-Lao border for a period of 25 years.
The power plant is expected to use approximately 14.3 million tonnes of lignite per year.
The project is expected to improve the living standards of local communities through constant generation of revenue, promoting the bilateral economic relationship between Thailand and the Lao PDR, and fulfilling the bilateral power purchase agreement between the two countries.
KPL
