SBR- Content.pmd - INBO

State of the Basin Report - 2003The chapter which follows discusses: the importance of electric power; the potential for hydrodevelopment in the Mekong Basin; projected growth in the demand for electric power in the LMB;the status of hydropower development in the LMB and factors which influence hydropowerdevelopment; positive and negative impacts of hydropower development; and, China’s plans forhydro projects in the upper basin.1. Importance of electric power and common sourcesElectric power is required both for economic development and for domestic use. As economiesdevelop and people’s living standards improve, their requirements for electric power increase. In theLower Mekong Basin, the combination of rapid economic development and improvement of people’sliving standards has greatly increased the demand for electric power.Worldwide a variety of power sources are used. These include fossil fuels (coal, petroleum, naturalgas), nuclear power, renewable energies (hydro, geo-thermal, wind, solar power) and othergenerating systems such as fuel cells. According to estimates made in 1999 by the US government’sEnergy Information Administration, globally about 63 percent of power is generated from fossilfuels, 19 percent from hydro, 17 percent from nuclear power and 1 percent from other sources(EIA 1999).The world’s deposits of fossil fuels are limited and the price of fossil fuels fluctuates greatly. Thereare also concerns that using fossil fuels emits CO 2 , which contributes to global warming and addsother environmentally-damaging substances to the atmosphere (SO x , NO x , micro dust, etc.). In orderto reduce dependency on fossil fuels and mitigate the adverse impacts on the environment, effortsare being made worldwide to develop other means of generating electricity. In recent years, interestin using nuclear power has declined because of concerns about safety. Although alternative powersources such as fuel cells, solar and wind power are used to a limited extent, these alternatives arecurrently either too expensive or their capacity is too limited to meet more than a small fraction ofthe demand for electric power.Of energy sources other than fossil and nuclear fuels, only hydro is currently a major source ofelectric power. Although worldwide, hydropower is limited by the availability of suitable sites,in the Mekong River Basin, the potential for hydro development is considerable. Since knownenergy sources other than hydro are limited in the Mekong Basin, especially in Lao PDR andCambodia, the development of hydropower could be of considerable benefit. Provided projectsdo not cause serious environmental or social consequences (as discussed later in this chapter),they could meet both local needs for power and earn income from sales to more-industralisedneighbouring countries.2. The potential for hydropower development in the Mekong basinThe total potential for feasible hydropower projects in the four Lower Mekong Basin countries isapproximately 30,000 megawatts (MW). Of this, 13,000 MW are on the Mekong’s mainstream,and the remaining potential is in the tributaries (13,000 MW on tributaries in Lao PDR, 2,200MW on tributaries in Cambodia and 2,000 MW on tributaries in Viet Nam). As stated above, only5 percent (some 1,600 MW) of the Lower Mekong’s hydro potential have been developed, and allprojects are on the tributaries, not on the mainstream. There is also considerable hydro potentialin the Upper Mekong Basin. In Yunnan Province of the People’s Republic of China, total hydropotential is an estimated 23,000 MW, and two projects, totalling 2,850 MW, have already begun206