A feasibility study for a railway linking Vientiane with Vung Ang seaport in Vietnam has begun, reports Thai PBS. The study of the 550km-long rail line is set to take about two years to complete, scheduled from December 2015 to December 2017. The study is being conducted with a US$3 million grant from Korea International Cooperation Agency (KOICA). The project’s section in Laos will be about 450 km long, while the section in Vietnam was reported to be about 119 km long. The Vientiane–Thakhaek–Muya rail project is technically known as the A3 rail project.
As Vientiane Times reports, the Vientiane-Muya-Railway should link with the planned Vientiane-Boten-Railway. And there are more projects: In 2012, the Lao government signed an agreement with a Malaysian investor, Giant Rail Company Limited, to develop the Savan-Lao Bao rail project linking central Savannakhet province of Laos with the Laos-Vietnam Dansavan-Lao Bao border gate over a distance of about 220km. This project is still in the preparation stage for construction. In addition, an initial survey was completed on the Vientiane-Pakxe-Chongmek project some 452 km in length connecting Vangtao-Chongmek Lao-Thai border checkpoint in the southern province of Champassak with the Savan-Lao Bao railway project.
Saturday, February 27, 2016
Sunday, August 24, 2014
Xayaburi Dam and Don Sahong Dam in Mekong
River divide Laos, Cambodia and Vietnam
See the location on Xayaburi Dam and Don Sahong Dam Google Map
Picture by International Rivers
Mekong River today at Xayaburi: no dam yet, but construction has begun:
Picture by International Rivers
Picture by International Rivers
There has been no dam today in the Mekong River between the Golden Triangle (Northern Thailand) and the Mekong Delta in southern Vietnam. But now Laos is on the way to change this: Construction works for Xayaburi Dam have progressed. And a project for Don Sahong Dam in the Si Phan Don area in southern Laos has been launched. There is the fear, that these dam projects may hit the livelihood of tens of millions of people living along the Mekong. Therefore this blog starts a documentation about what is happening.
20.8.2014
Laos has suspended construction of its controversial Don Sahong hydropower dam on the Mekong River. This has been said by Lao ambassador Prasith Sayasith during a meeting with Cambodian Deputy Prime Minister Hor Namhong, as Radio Free Asia reports.
3.4.2014:
Construction of the Xayaburi Hydro-power plant, the first dam is now 23% complete.
Lao media report this according to Bangkok Post. It is "on track to be operational in 2019 as planned," the Vientiane Times reported. 39 Organizations based in Cambodia, Vietnam, Thailand and Australia have issued one more Plea to Halt Xayaburi Dam in Laos as Chiangrai Times reports.
39.3.2014:
Protest against Don Sahong Dam in Si Phan Don
About 600 people are scheduled on Saturday to start a four-day protest that will include marches and boat trips to call for construction of the controversial Don Sahong dam on the Cambodian-Lao border to be halted, reports The Cambodia Daily. The highly sensitive and critically endangered freshwater dolphins in this area will likely be extinct if dams such as the Don Sahong go ahead, the WWF has said. See also video by WWF.
3.10.2013: The Government of Laos notifies the Mekong River Commission of its intention to construct the Don Sahong Dam. In June 2008 the Malaysian Mega First Corporation Berhad (70 percent of the shares) had formed a joint venture with IJM Corporation (30 percent) for the project development. The Don Sahong Dam is a Run-of-the-river hydroelectricity facility. It would be located at the downstream end of the Hou Sahong channel between Don Sahong and Don Sadam islands. The dam's height would be between 30 and 32 metres. It would have a capacity of 260 MW. Most of the produced electricity would be exported to Thailand and Cambodia. Many independent fisheries experts fear that the dam would have a serious impact on fish migration as the channel is the only one within the Khone Falls complex that is passable to migratory fishes in the dry-season, and it is the major migration channel year-round. There is grave concern among environmentalists that the dam will jeopardise fish catches in Cambodia's Tonle Sap lake, as The Nation reports. Read background on thediplomat.com.
18.1.2013:
Vietnam and Cambodia tell Laos to stop $3.5bn Mekong River dam project
Vietnam urged Laos to halt construction of a $3.5bn (£2.2bn) hydropower dam on Mekong River pending further study. The Mekong River commission (MRC), made up of member states Vietnam, Cambodia, Laos and Thailand, held a three-day meeting in northern Laos to discuss river development projects. The dam in northern Laos, the first of 11 planned for the lower Mekong River, threatens the livelihood of tens of millions who depend on the river's aquatic resources, activists say. Read more on guardian.co.uk.
8.12.2012: Xayaboury project differs from other dams
The Xayaboury hydropower project differs significantly from earlier hydropower projects in the region. Director General of the Department of Energy Policy and Planning, Dr Daovong Phonekeo, says that the Xayaboury dam will be the first run-of-river scheme to be built on the Mekong River and the first in Laos. In a run-of-river scheme there is no high dam storing enormous amounts of water. The water is kept within the river’s course and the level is raised only minimally to allow for the passage of ships and fish migration. As no reservoir is created, the daily flow of water through the dam is used for power generation throughout the year. The river’s hydrology, or seasonal flows, will continue as normal because the same volume of water that flows upstream will flow downstream. Fish passage and sediment flushing systems designed for the Xayaboury dam are based on natural river conditions. “With respect to Xayaboury, we have conducted thorough and detailed studies to improve fish passage in a number of ways and we have incorporated sediment flushing systems and other mitigation measures as well,” Dr Daovong said. Based on recommendations from independent consultants Poyry and Compagnie Nationale du Rhone, the fish ladder has been extended to ensure the maximum number of fish species will be able to pass through the dam. In addition, the navigation locks will function as a fish lift, an additional fish tunnel will be built and fish-friendly turbines are to be used. Meanwhile a fish hatching station will complement the lift, ladder and tunnel to ensure that any endangered fish species survive. Sediment transport through the Xayaboury dam has been designed in accordance with recommendations from Compagnie Nationale du Rhone, which has been operating 19 run-of-river hydropower stations on the Rhone River for the last 50 years. There are are many successful examples of run-of-river or “low-head” dams especially in Europe. The Rheinfelden power plant, 25 km east of Basel, Switzerland, harnesses the power of the Rhine River. The Fredenau hydroplant near Vienna, Austria, is the latest and largest hydropower facility to be built on the Danube River. Both are state-of-the-art and feature effective fish passage facilities. Read more on Vientiane Times.
3.12.2012
The Chinese-made Stung Atay dam in Cambodia collapses while under construction.
The Associated Press reports that the Saturday collapse occurred at the Stung Atay Hydroelectric Project, a $255-million dollar dam on the Atay river, funded by the Chinese state-owned China Datang Corporation and situated in Cambodia’s Cardamom Mountains. The construction of the 120 megawatt Stung Atay hydropower dam began in 2008 and is scheduled to be completed in May 2013. Read more on Living in Phnom Penh.
25.11.12: Vientiane says sorry for broken Xayaburi ground
Bhuddhist monks led almsgiving and chanting in the Lao valley, where the dam will soon form a concrete barrier across the mainstream Mekong River. "Normally, before we start blasting the riverbed, the Lao tradition is to ask the spirits in the area to forgive us for disturbing the river," Viraphonh Viravong, Laos' Vice-Minister of Resources and Mining, said. The Thai company Ch Karnchang will develop and co-own the dam with the Lao government. The Electricity Generating Authority of Thailand (Egat) has secured a 28-year deal to purchase 90% of power generated by the dam. Bangkok Bank, Krung Thai Bank, Siam Commercial Bank, Krung Thai Bank, Tisco Bank and the Export-Import Bank of Thailand are financing the dam. The Xayaburi dam will be 40 metres high and 800 metres across, with no reservoirs. Read more on Bangkok Post. And read Media Kit on the Xayaburi Dam by internationalrivers.org.
Picture by International Rivers
Thai villagers protest against Xayaburi dam during Asia Europe Summit in Vientiane on 5 November 2012.
Picture by International Rivers
Lao Theung women of Ban Huay Song are panning for gold near Kaeng Luang. The income from this is meager, but the construction of Xayaburi Dam nearby shall make it vanish forever.
23.10.2012
Questions over China dams
Some questions remain about whether hydro dams on the upper Mekong River in China exacerbated conditions during Cambodia's devastating drought of 2010, environmental groups say, as China's dam program powers ahead. Last month the first power-generating unit was switched on at China's giant 262-metre tall Nuozhadu hydroelectric dam, which will be the largest on the river when completed in 2014. Research showed "water flow in the river's China section accounted for only 13.5 per cent of the river's total, making the country's hydropower development have little impact downstream", China Daily said. Ame Trandem, Southeast Asia program director for International Rivers, said, however, that China's section of the Mekong, known in that country as the Lancang River, provided as much as 50 per cent of the river's total water flow during the dry season. Read more on Phnom Penh Post.
17.9.12
Thai petition against Xayaburi dam
A conservation group submitted a petition with more than 9,000 signatures from people opposed to a controversial dam on the Mekong River to Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra yesterday, demanding the Thai government cease support for the Xayaburi Dam. Read the news and comments.
Map of Mekong dam projects
16.1.2012:
Portland State University researchers expose environmental costs of building Mekong River dams:
Their study also put new dollar signs on the potential cost to the environment and traditional fisheries — figuring the net economic impact of a string of electricity-producing dams could range from a gain of $33 billion to a loss of $274 billion.
4.1.2012
China has built dams:
Meanwhile China has been building a series of dams on the upper Mekong especially in Yunnan province. They say that the dams in Yunnan will have a positive environmental impact and will help control flooding in the downstream. However, the downstream countries have expressed that the dams will severely restrict the migration of fish and will have drastic impacts on the hydrological flow of the river. (..) China has never joined Mekong River Commission and it still refuses to join.
29.12.2011:
New dam project underway in Laos’ Luang Prabang province:
Construction of a 308-million-dollar hydropower dam on the Khan River in Laos’ Luang Prabang province is 15 per cent completed and should be operational by 2015, reports said Wednesday. A total investment of about 2.4 trillion kip (308 million dollars), of which 95 percent had been borrowed from the Exim Bank of China. China’s Sinohydro Company is handling construction of the dam, which will be 136 meters high and 365 meters long, creating a reservoir of 30.5 square kilometers with a capacity to store 686 million cubic meters of water, the newspaper reported.
19.12.2011
Don’t dream the Xayaburi hydropower project is over. It’s not dead yet. Laos keeps its hydropower hopes alive:
The agreement to further study the dam constitutes a time-buying tactic for more negotiations among the four countries. As long as the project is not shot down, there is a chance it will go ahead. The message from Laos to the other three countries in the meeting has given an open door for Vientiane to keep on fighting for it. (Bangkok Post)
15.12.2011:
Thai Utility Commits to Purchase Power from Xayaburi Dam: Thai Senators are investigating whether the Electricity Generating Authority of Thailand (EGAT) violated the Thai government’s instructions by signing an agreement to purchase power from the controversial Xayaburi Dam before it is approved by the Mekong River Commission’s member governments. Read more on internationalrivers.org.
9.12.2011
Xayaburi Dam Stopped for Now
: Environmentalists appear to have been handed a second rare victory in Southeast Asia with Thursday’s decision by the Mekong River Commission Council to delay for an uncertain period the construction of the Xayaburi Dam on the Mekong River 100 km. inside Laos. The council, comprising water and environment ministers from Cambodia, Laos, Thailand and Vietnam, agreed at a meeting in Siem Riep, Cambodia, to seek international support to produce a more complete study of the dam. However, the Xayaburi Dam, 810 meters wide and 32 meters high, could well be harder to stop although at least 263 NGOs from 51 countries and thousands of people in the area have urged that it be cancelled. Its primary objective is to generate foreign exchange earnings for financing socio-economic development in Laos. Preliminary construction has already begun, with access roads and the dam foundation already in place, according to Ame Trandem, the Thailand representative for the Berkeley, Calif.-based Save the Rivers environmental group. Read more on asiasentinel.com.
7.12.2011
Cambodia opens Kampot Hydro Dam
Energy-starved Cambodia on Wednesday opened Kamchay dam, the country's largest hydropower dam to date, a multi-million dollar Chinese-funded project, which cost more than $280 million, in southern Kampot province. US-based campaigners International Rivers said the Kamchay dam had destroyed hundreds of hectares of forest and farmland and warned it would have a negative impact on fisheries and on local people's livelihoods. Read more on AFP. The dam is invested and constructed by the Sinohydro Corporation. The project is a concessional contract of a 44-year build- operate-transfer (BOT) with Cambodian government. Of the period, 4 years for construction and 40 years for operations, it said, adding the electricity is sold to the state-owned Electricity of Cambodia. The Kamchay hydroelectric dam is one of the five dams with a total capacity of 915 megawatts invested by China in the total investments of 1.6 billion U.S. dollars. The other four dams being constructed are Kirirom III hydropower dam with the capacity of 18 megawatts, Tatay river hydropower dam with the capacity of 246 megawatts, Atay hydropower dam of 120 megawatts and Russei Chrum Krom with the capacity of 338 megawatts, according to the reports of Cambodia’s Ministry of Industry, Mine and Energy. Read more on Living in Phnom Penh.
5.12.2011
Thailand’s Role in the Xayaburi Dam: Not only does Thailand plan to purchase 95% of the dam’s electricity, but Thai companies are building the dam and four Thai banks will finance the project. Without Thailand’s help, the Xayaburi Dam would not exist. Read more on chiangraitimes.com.
12.9.2011:
In Laos, a tale of two dams: In an isolated valley in central Laos where people live mostly in wooden stilt homes accessed by dirt roads, the thick concrete slabs and towering mechanical apparatuses of the Nam Theun 2 dam stand at odds with their surroundings. The Laos government and World Bank pledged to resituate displaced families with enough farmland and credit that their yearly income would double — a benchmark that has nearly been reached, they say — and many villagers were given a say in the process, according to developers.
“We realize it’s much cheaper to develop [on] a larger scale and use the export earnings to subsidize rural electrification,” said Viraphonh Viravong, director of the Laos Department of Electricity and the government’s point-person for the Xayaburi dam. “That’s why the project started to get bigger and bigger.”
Plentiful rivers, mountains and rainfall collectively give Laos high hydropower potential, and its more industrialized neighbors Vietnam and Thailand are eager buyers of electricity; the government has already pledged to sell 95 percent of the electricity generated by the Xayaburi dam to Thailand. Read more on globalpost.com
17.4.2011
Decision Looms for Laos Dam, but Impact Is Unclear: The news media in Vietnam, which normally hew to the government’s line, have been unusually critical of the Xayaburi dam project. Farmers in the Mekong Delta fear that an accumulation of dams on the river could reduce the volume of water that reaches Vietnam, exacerbating the problem of saltwater seeping into farming areas from the sea. The plan calls for a generating capacity of 1,285 megawatts, enough to power a small or medium-size city. The dam, which is situated between steep hills and will span a distance of about eight football fields, will have the same impact as a “natural waterfall,” the government said in response to the report by the Mekong River Commission. The government says it plans to become “the battery” of Asia with a total of 70 hydroelectric projects, 10 of which are already in operation. Read more on nytimes.com.
Xayaburi dam work begins on sly: An investigation by the Bangkok Post Sunday which visited the area surrounding the Xayaburi dam on the Lower Mekong River last week found major road works under construction and villagers preparing to be relocated. At Ban Talan, villagers said Lao authorities had come to see them. They were told they would have to move but no date was specified. The villagers said they were promised new concrete houses allotted by the government on a nearby mountain.(Bangkok Post)
10.1.2011
The Mekong River: To dam or not to dam? Xayaburi dam is the first of 12 proposed hydropower dams on the Mekong. The dams “will have profound negative consequences for people, agriculture, fisheries, and riverine ecology,” said Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute research associate Tyson Roberts, who has studied Mekong fishes for over 40 years. The Mekong harbors a rich diversity of animal species such as the critically endangered Mekong giant catfish and Irrawaddy dolphin. With an estimated annual harvest of approximately 2.2 million tons of fish, the Mekong also ranks as the world’s largest inland fishery and impacts the livelihoods of the nearly 30 million people who live within 10 miles of its lower stretches. Up to 70 percent of fish species in the Mekong migrate long distances to feed and spawn, and dams would both physically block their upstream journey as well as change the environmental signals that trigger migration, Eric Baran explained in a paper published in the environmental journal AMBIO last June. Altering the Mekong’s flow could have a disastrous effect on agriculture. Any change in sediments and nutrients transported by the river can change rice yields, Philippe Cacot explained. Manipulating the river’s flow could also allow for salt-water intrusion in the Delta, another major threat to agriculture. (scienceline.org)
25.4.2004
Dammed and dying: The Mekong and its communities face a bleak future
One of the world's greatest rivers has been reduced to a trickle in places by a series of giant Chinese dams. The Mekong's downstream countries, which are almost completely dependent on the river and its tributaries for food, water and transport, fear that China's plans for a further six major dams on the river could be disastrous. The Manwan hydroelectric dam across the upper Mekong, finished in 1996, has been frequently blamed by Thailand and other countries for reduced fishing and also for causing flash floods when water is released unpredictably. A second giant dam, at Dachaoshan, is almost complete but is said to be already affecting the river flow, and a third is due for completion in 2012. Read more on guardian.co.uk.
See also: http://www.savethemekong.org
Picture by International RiversMekong River today at Xayaburi: no dam yet, but construction has begun:
Picture by International Rivers
Picture by International RiversThere has been no dam today in the Mekong River between the Golden Triangle (Northern Thailand) and the Mekong Delta in southern Vietnam. But now Laos is on the way to change this: Construction works for Xayaburi Dam have progressed. And a project for Don Sahong Dam in the Si Phan Don area in southern Laos has been launched. There is the fear, that these dam projects may hit the livelihood of tens of millions of people living along the Mekong. Therefore this blog starts a documentation about what is happening.
20.8.2014
Laos has suspended construction of its controversial Don Sahong hydropower dam on the Mekong River. This has been said by Lao ambassador Prasith Sayasith during a meeting with Cambodian Deputy Prime Minister Hor Namhong, as Radio Free Asia reports.
3.4.2014:
Construction of the Xayaburi Hydro-power plant, the first dam is now 23% complete.
Lao media report this according to Bangkok Post. It is "on track to be operational in 2019 as planned," the Vientiane Times reported. 39 Organizations based in Cambodia, Vietnam, Thailand and Australia have issued one more Plea to Halt Xayaburi Dam in Laos as Chiangrai Times reports.
39.3.2014:
Protest against Don Sahong Dam in Si Phan Don
About 600 people are scheduled on Saturday to start a four-day protest that will include marches and boat trips to call for construction of the controversial Don Sahong dam on the Cambodian-Lao border to be halted, reports The Cambodia Daily. The highly sensitive and critically endangered freshwater dolphins in this area will likely be extinct if dams such as the Don Sahong go ahead, the WWF has said. See also video by WWF.
3.10.2013: The Government of Laos notifies the Mekong River Commission of its intention to construct the Don Sahong Dam. In June 2008 the Malaysian Mega First Corporation Berhad (70 percent of the shares) had formed a joint venture with IJM Corporation (30 percent) for the project development. The Don Sahong Dam is a Run-of-the-river hydroelectricity facility. It would be located at the downstream end of the Hou Sahong channel between Don Sahong and Don Sadam islands. The dam's height would be between 30 and 32 metres. It would have a capacity of 260 MW. Most of the produced electricity would be exported to Thailand and Cambodia. Many independent fisheries experts fear that the dam would have a serious impact on fish migration as the channel is the only one within the Khone Falls complex that is passable to migratory fishes in the dry-season, and it is the major migration channel year-round. There is grave concern among environmentalists that the dam will jeopardise fish catches in Cambodia's Tonle Sap lake, as The Nation reports. Read background on thediplomat.com.
18.1.2013:
Vietnam and Cambodia tell Laos to stop $3.5bn Mekong River dam project
Vietnam urged Laos to halt construction of a $3.5bn (£2.2bn) hydropower dam on Mekong River pending further study. The Mekong River commission (MRC), made up of member states Vietnam, Cambodia, Laos and Thailand, held a three-day meeting in northern Laos to discuss river development projects. The dam in northern Laos, the first of 11 planned for the lower Mekong River, threatens the livelihood of tens of millions who depend on the river's aquatic resources, activists say. Read more on guardian.co.uk.
8.12.2012: Xayaboury project differs from other dams
The Xayaboury hydropower project differs significantly from earlier hydropower projects in the region. Director General of the Department of Energy Policy and Planning, Dr Daovong Phonekeo, says that the Xayaboury dam will be the first run-of-river scheme to be built on the Mekong River and the first in Laos. In a run-of-river scheme there is no high dam storing enormous amounts of water. The water is kept within the river’s course and the level is raised only minimally to allow for the passage of ships and fish migration. As no reservoir is created, the daily flow of water through the dam is used for power generation throughout the year. The river’s hydrology, or seasonal flows, will continue as normal because the same volume of water that flows upstream will flow downstream. Fish passage and sediment flushing systems designed for the Xayaboury dam are based on natural river conditions. “With respect to Xayaboury, we have conducted thorough and detailed studies to improve fish passage in a number of ways and we have incorporated sediment flushing systems and other mitigation measures as well,” Dr Daovong said. Based on recommendations from independent consultants Poyry and Compagnie Nationale du Rhone, the fish ladder has been extended to ensure the maximum number of fish species will be able to pass through the dam. In addition, the navigation locks will function as a fish lift, an additional fish tunnel will be built and fish-friendly turbines are to be used. Meanwhile a fish hatching station will complement the lift, ladder and tunnel to ensure that any endangered fish species survive. Sediment transport through the Xayaboury dam has been designed in accordance with recommendations from Compagnie Nationale du Rhone, which has been operating 19 run-of-river hydropower stations on the Rhone River for the last 50 years. There are are many successful examples of run-of-river or “low-head” dams especially in Europe. The Rheinfelden power plant, 25 km east of Basel, Switzerland, harnesses the power of the Rhine River. The Fredenau hydroplant near Vienna, Austria, is the latest and largest hydropower facility to be built on the Danube River. Both are state-of-the-art and feature effective fish passage facilities. Read more on Vientiane Times.
3.12.2012
The Chinese-made Stung Atay dam in Cambodia collapses while under construction.
The Associated Press reports that the Saturday collapse occurred at the Stung Atay Hydroelectric Project, a $255-million dollar dam on the Atay river, funded by the Chinese state-owned China Datang Corporation and situated in Cambodia’s Cardamom Mountains. The construction of the 120 megawatt Stung Atay hydropower dam began in 2008 and is scheduled to be completed in May 2013. Read more on Living in Phnom Penh.
25.11.12: Vientiane says sorry for broken Xayaburi ground
Bhuddhist monks led almsgiving and chanting in the Lao valley, where the dam will soon form a concrete barrier across the mainstream Mekong River. "Normally, before we start blasting the riverbed, the Lao tradition is to ask the spirits in the area to forgive us for disturbing the river," Viraphonh Viravong, Laos' Vice-Minister of Resources and Mining, said. The Thai company Ch Karnchang will develop and co-own the dam with the Lao government. The Electricity Generating Authority of Thailand (Egat) has secured a 28-year deal to purchase 90% of power generated by the dam. Bangkok Bank, Krung Thai Bank, Siam Commercial Bank, Krung Thai Bank, Tisco Bank and the Export-Import Bank of Thailand are financing the dam. The Xayaburi dam will be 40 metres high and 800 metres across, with no reservoirs. Read more on Bangkok Post. And read Media Kit on the Xayaburi Dam by internationalrivers.org.
Picture by International RiversThai villagers protest against Xayaburi dam during Asia Europe Summit in Vientiane on 5 November 2012.
Picture by International RiversLao Theung women of Ban Huay Song are panning for gold near Kaeng Luang. The income from this is meager, but the construction of Xayaburi Dam nearby shall make it vanish forever.
23.10.2012
Questions over China dams
Some questions remain about whether hydro dams on the upper Mekong River in China exacerbated conditions during Cambodia's devastating drought of 2010, environmental groups say, as China's dam program powers ahead. Last month the first power-generating unit was switched on at China's giant 262-metre tall Nuozhadu hydroelectric dam, which will be the largest on the river when completed in 2014. Research showed "water flow in the river's China section accounted for only 13.5 per cent of the river's total, making the country's hydropower development have little impact downstream", China Daily said. Ame Trandem, Southeast Asia program director for International Rivers, said, however, that China's section of the Mekong, known in that country as the Lancang River, provided as much as 50 per cent of the river's total water flow during the dry season. Read more on Phnom Penh Post.
17.9.12
Thai petition against Xayaburi dam
A conservation group submitted a petition with more than 9,000 signatures from people opposed to a controversial dam on the Mekong River to Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra yesterday, demanding the Thai government cease support for the Xayaburi Dam. Read the news and comments.
Map of Mekong dam projects
16.1.2012:
Portland State University researchers expose environmental costs of building Mekong River dams:
Their study also put new dollar signs on the potential cost to the environment and traditional fisheries — figuring the net economic impact of a string of electricity-producing dams could range from a gain of $33 billion to a loss of $274 billion.
4.1.2012
China has built dams:
Meanwhile China has been building a series of dams on the upper Mekong especially in Yunnan province. They say that the dams in Yunnan will have a positive environmental impact and will help control flooding in the downstream. However, the downstream countries have expressed that the dams will severely restrict the migration of fish and will have drastic impacts on the hydrological flow of the river. (..) China has never joined Mekong River Commission and it still refuses to join.
29.12.2011:
New dam project underway in Laos’ Luang Prabang province:
Construction of a 308-million-dollar hydropower dam on the Khan River in Laos’ Luang Prabang province is 15 per cent completed and should be operational by 2015, reports said Wednesday. A total investment of about 2.4 trillion kip (308 million dollars), of which 95 percent had been borrowed from the Exim Bank of China. China’s Sinohydro Company is handling construction of the dam, which will be 136 meters high and 365 meters long, creating a reservoir of 30.5 square kilometers with a capacity to store 686 million cubic meters of water, the newspaper reported.
19.12.2011
Don’t dream the Xayaburi hydropower project is over. It’s not dead yet. Laos keeps its hydropower hopes alive:
The agreement to further study the dam constitutes a time-buying tactic for more negotiations among the four countries. As long as the project is not shot down, there is a chance it will go ahead. The message from Laos to the other three countries in the meeting has given an open door for Vientiane to keep on fighting for it. (Bangkok Post)
15.12.2011:
Thai Utility Commits to Purchase Power from Xayaburi Dam: Thai Senators are investigating whether the Electricity Generating Authority of Thailand (EGAT) violated the Thai government’s instructions by signing an agreement to purchase power from the controversial Xayaburi Dam before it is approved by the Mekong River Commission’s member governments. Read more on internationalrivers.org.
9.12.2011
Xayaburi Dam Stopped for Now
: Environmentalists appear to have been handed a second rare victory in Southeast Asia with Thursday’s decision by the Mekong River Commission Council to delay for an uncertain period the construction of the Xayaburi Dam on the Mekong River 100 km. inside Laos. The council, comprising water and environment ministers from Cambodia, Laos, Thailand and Vietnam, agreed at a meeting in Siem Riep, Cambodia, to seek international support to produce a more complete study of the dam. However, the Xayaburi Dam, 810 meters wide and 32 meters high, could well be harder to stop although at least 263 NGOs from 51 countries and thousands of people in the area have urged that it be cancelled. Its primary objective is to generate foreign exchange earnings for financing socio-economic development in Laos. Preliminary construction has already begun, with access roads and the dam foundation already in place, according to Ame Trandem, the Thailand representative for the Berkeley, Calif.-based Save the Rivers environmental group. Read more on asiasentinel.com.
7.12.2011
Cambodia opens Kampot Hydro Dam
Energy-starved Cambodia on Wednesday opened Kamchay dam, the country's largest hydropower dam to date, a multi-million dollar Chinese-funded project, which cost more than $280 million, in southern Kampot province. US-based campaigners International Rivers said the Kamchay dam had destroyed hundreds of hectares of forest and farmland and warned it would have a negative impact on fisheries and on local people's livelihoods. Read more on AFP. The dam is invested and constructed by the Sinohydro Corporation. The project is a concessional contract of a 44-year build- operate-transfer (BOT) with Cambodian government. Of the period, 4 years for construction and 40 years for operations, it said, adding the electricity is sold to the state-owned Electricity of Cambodia. The Kamchay hydroelectric dam is one of the five dams with a total capacity of 915 megawatts invested by China in the total investments of 1.6 billion U.S. dollars. The other four dams being constructed are Kirirom III hydropower dam with the capacity of 18 megawatts, Tatay river hydropower dam with the capacity of 246 megawatts, Atay hydropower dam of 120 megawatts and Russei Chrum Krom with the capacity of 338 megawatts, according to the reports of Cambodia’s Ministry of Industry, Mine and Energy. Read more on Living in Phnom Penh.
5.12.2011
Thailand’s Role in the Xayaburi Dam: Not only does Thailand plan to purchase 95% of the dam’s electricity, but Thai companies are building the dam and four Thai banks will finance the project. Without Thailand’s help, the Xayaburi Dam would not exist. Read more on chiangraitimes.com.
12.9.2011:
In Laos, a tale of two dams: In an isolated valley in central Laos where people live mostly in wooden stilt homes accessed by dirt roads, the thick concrete slabs and towering mechanical apparatuses of the Nam Theun 2 dam stand at odds with their surroundings. The Laos government and World Bank pledged to resituate displaced families with enough farmland and credit that their yearly income would double — a benchmark that has nearly been reached, they say — and many villagers were given a say in the process, according to developers.
“We realize it’s much cheaper to develop [on] a larger scale and use the export earnings to subsidize rural electrification,” said Viraphonh Viravong, director of the Laos Department of Electricity and the government’s point-person for the Xayaburi dam. “That’s why the project started to get bigger and bigger.”
Plentiful rivers, mountains and rainfall collectively give Laos high hydropower potential, and its more industrialized neighbors Vietnam and Thailand are eager buyers of electricity; the government has already pledged to sell 95 percent of the electricity generated by the Xayaburi dam to Thailand. Read more on globalpost.com
17.4.2011
Decision Looms for Laos Dam, but Impact Is Unclear: The news media in Vietnam, which normally hew to the government’s line, have been unusually critical of the Xayaburi dam project. Farmers in the Mekong Delta fear that an accumulation of dams on the river could reduce the volume of water that reaches Vietnam, exacerbating the problem of saltwater seeping into farming areas from the sea. The plan calls for a generating capacity of 1,285 megawatts, enough to power a small or medium-size city. The dam, which is situated between steep hills and will span a distance of about eight football fields, will have the same impact as a “natural waterfall,” the government said in response to the report by the Mekong River Commission. The government says it plans to become “the battery” of Asia with a total of 70 hydroelectric projects, 10 of which are already in operation. Read more on nytimes.com.
Xayaburi dam work begins on sly: An investigation by the Bangkok Post Sunday which visited the area surrounding the Xayaburi dam on the Lower Mekong River last week found major road works under construction and villagers preparing to be relocated. At Ban Talan, villagers said Lao authorities had come to see them. They were told they would have to move but no date was specified. The villagers said they were promised new concrete houses allotted by the government on a nearby mountain.(Bangkok Post)
10.1.2011
The Mekong River: To dam or not to dam? Xayaburi dam is the first of 12 proposed hydropower dams on the Mekong. The dams “will have profound negative consequences for people, agriculture, fisheries, and riverine ecology,” said Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute research associate Tyson Roberts, who has studied Mekong fishes for over 40 years. The Mekong harbors a rich diversity of animal species such as the critically endangered Mekong giant catfish and Irrawaddy dolphin. With an estimated annual harvest of approximately 2.2 million tons of fish, the Mekong also ranks as the world’s largest inland fishery and impacts the livelihoods of the nearly 30 million people who live within 10 miles of its lower stretches. Up to 70 percent of fish species in the Mekong migrate long distances to feed and spawn, and dams would both physically block their upstream journey as well as change the environmental signals that trigger migration, Eric Baran explained in a paper published in the environmental journal AMBIO last June. Altering the Mekong’s flow could have a disastrous effect on agriculture. Any change in sediments and nutrients transported by the river can change rice yields, Philippe Cacot explained. Manipulating the river’s flow could also allow for salt-water intrusion in the Delta, another major threat to agriculture. (scienceline.org)
25.4.2004
Dammed and dying: The Mekong and its communities face a bleak future
One of the world's greatest rivers has been reduced to a trickle in places by a series of giant Chinese dams. The Mekong's downstream countries, which are almost completely dependent on the river and its tributaries for food, water and transport, fear that China's plans for a further six major dams on the river could be disastrous. The Manwan hydroelectric dam across the upper Mekong, finished in 1996, has been frequently blamed by Thailand and other countries for reduced fishing and also for causing flash floods when water is released unpredictably. A second giant dam, at Dachaoshan, is almost complete but is said to be already affecting the river flow, and a third is due for completion in 2012. Read more on guardian.co.uk.
See also: http://www.savethemekong.org
Saturday, May 17, 2014
Lao top Government Officials killed by Plane Crash
A plane carrying top senior Laotian government officials crashed Saturday morning, leaving at least four people dead, reports Thomas Fuller. Killed were the deputy prime minister, defence minister and member of Politburo, Douangchay Phichit, and Thongbane Sengaphone, the minister of public security, the two most powerful people in the security apparatus. The governor of Vientiane province, Soukanh Mahalath, and Cheuang Sombounkhanh, secretariat of the Lao People's Revolutionary Party's Central Committee and chairman of the Propaganda Training Committee, were was also killed in the crash according to bangkokpost.com. The plane was a Russian-made Antonov AN-74TK300, the crash happened near Nadee village in Paek district of Xiengkouang province according to KPL, the Lao News Agency, that published pictures. This was west of the Xiangkhouang airport and not far from the Plain of Jars. More pictures are shown on site Lao Pictures on Facebook.
Thursday, October 17, 2013
Dozens die as Lao Airlines crashes before landing in Pakse
See the locations on Ban Phaling Google Map
22.10.2013
Lao Airlines and its insurance company have paid 20 million kip and US$5,000 respectively to the family of each of the victims of last week's plane crash, as The Cambodia Herald reports. This payment is intended to cover funeral expenses and further compensation is expected in the future, according to the Director General of Lao Airlines' Planning and Cooperation Department, Mr Sitthideth Duangsitthi. So far 43 bodies - out of 49 victims - have been recovered and 17 identified. The flight recorder of the plane that plunged into the Mekong River near Pakse, has been located and retrieved, as The Nation writes.
17.10.2013:
There is no hope that somebody could have survived the crash of flight QV301 by Lao Airlines from Vientiane to Pakse on Wednesday. The airplane went down into the Mekong near Ban Phaling village in Phonthong district, Champassak province. Rescuers in fishing boats pulled bodies from the Mekong River on Thursday. Divers from Thailand were helping. According to Thai Foreign Ministry spokesman Sek Wannamethee the bodies of 15 victims have been recovered, reported Associated Press. Lao Airlines released a second updated list of the 44 passengers' nationalities: On board were 16 Lao nationals, seven French, six Australians, five Thais, three Koreans, three Vietnamese and one person each from China, Malaysia, Taiwan and the United States. The bodies are kept at Vat Chin in Pakse district, as The Nation reports. Victims families and relatives find contact informations on Facebook-Page of Lao Airlines.
16.10.2013:
Very sad news from Laos: Dozens of people were killed in southern Laos when a plane of Lao Airlines crashed into the Mekong River on October 16, as BBC reports. Flight QV301 from the Laotian capital Vientiane (leaving 14.45) came down about 8km (5 miles) from Pakse airport. A Lao Airlines statement on Facebook gave a total of 49 dead. According to BBC among the dead are seven people vom France, five Thai nationals and three South Koreans and as well as citizens from Laos, Australia, Canada, China, Malaysia, Taiwan, the USA and Vietnam.
The plane that crashed has been identified by the news as ATR 72-600, which is a French-Italian manufactured twin-engine turboprop plane. French media say that the plane was brand new, delivered in March 2013. It crashed during stormy weather into Mekong River, near Don Khong according to Bangkok Post. This newspaper publishes the names of the victims.
Pakse page on Facebook shows pictures of parts of the crashed plane. Facebook Page "We Love Laos" shows the plane in Mekong River.
22.10.2013
Lao Airlines and its insurance company have paid 20 million kip and US$5,000 respectively to the family of each of the victims of last week's plane crash, as The Cambodia Herald reports. This payment is intended to cover funeral expenses and further compensation is expected in the future, according to the Director General of Lao Airlines' Planning and Cooperation Department, Mr Sitthideth Duangsitthi. So far 43 bodies - out of 49 victims - have been recovered and 17 identified. The flight recorder of the plane that plunged into the Mekong River near Pakse, has been located and retrieved, as The Nation writes.
17.10.2013:
There is no hope that somebody could have survived the crash of flight QV301 by Lao Airlines from Vientiane to Pakse on Wednesday. The airplane went down into the Mekong near Ban Phaling village in Phonthong district, Champassak province. Rescuers in fishing boats pulled bodies from the Mekong River on Thursday. Divers from Thailand were helping. According to Thai Foreign Ministry spokesman Sek Wannamethee the bodies of 15 victims have been recovered, reported Associated Press. Lao Airlines released a second updated list of the 44 passengers' nationalities: On board were 16 Lao nationals, seven French, six Australians, five Thais, three Koreans, three Vietnamese and one person each from China, Malaysia, Taiwan and the United States. The bodies are kept at Vat Chin in Pakse district, as The Nation reports. Victims families and relatives find contact informations on Facebook-Page of Lao Airlines.
16.10.2013:
Very sad news from Laos: Dozens of people were killed in southern Laos when a plane of Lao Airlines crashed into the Mekong River on October 16, as BBC reports. Flight QV301 from the Laotian capital Vientiane (leaving 14.45) came down about 8km (5 miles) from Pakse airport. A Lao Airlines statement on Facebook gave a total of 49 dead. According to BBC among the dead are seven people vom France, five Thai nationals and three South Koreans and as well as citizens from Laos, Australia, Canada, China, Malaysia, Taiwan, the USA and Vietnam.
The plane that crashed has been identified by the news as ATR 72-600, which is a French-Italian manufactured twin-engine turboprop plane. French media say that the plane was brand new, delivered in March 2013. It crashed during stormy weather into Mekong River, near Don Khong according to Bangkok Post. This newspaper publishes the names of the victims.
Pakse page on Facebook shows pictures of parts of the crashed plane. Facebook Page "We Love Laos" shows the plane in Mekong River.
Sunday, April 7, 2013
Golden Boten City has been closed down -
will it wake up again with help from China?
Picture by sama sama - massaChinese shops along the road in Boten
In Oudomxay province, a mountainous region south of the Chinese border in northern Laos you can see the effects of foreign investment by Chinese business in Laos, notes chinadialogue.net. In 2002, the Lao government earmarked the region for development including hotels, casinos and commercial centres. Sitting on the Chinese border next to Route 3, the town of Boten (磨丁市) was designated a Special Economic Zone. And the big plans led to a big name: "Boten Golden City". The 21 square kilometers on which the town sits have been leased for 30 years by a Hong Kong-registered company, led by Wong Man Suen, with an option to extend this lease by another 60 years, as Asia Times Online noted. The main road, was paved. Chinese workers poured into the Boten Special Economic Zone as construction sites and towering hotels sprang up amid the verdant hills. Dominating the landscape of Boten is the 271-room Royal Jinlun hotel and casino complex, and there were Chinese restaurants, cell-phone outlets, duty free shops and stalls selling cheap Chinese products. It was illegal for Laotians to gamble, in was also illegal for Chinese in China, but Chinese could simply walk across the border without a visa. The town worked on Beijing time, accepted only Chinese currency and spoke only Mandarin Chinese. Electricity and telephone lines ran from China, and electric sockets adhered to Chinese standards. The growing numbers of prostitutes that patrolled the streets were all Chinese, as were the beer and the cigarettes (see pictures by Midnitemapper).
But in April 2011 the casino was shut down after Chinese authorities had urged their neighbors in Laos to do so. This after media reports that Chinese gamblers were held hostage in Boten for unpaid debts. Most shop and restaurant owners then packed up and left, the same did a Thai transvestite show and the Chinese prostitutes. "The enclave’s economy seems to have collapsed just as the builders hit their stride with a new high-rise hotel and a shopping centre bristling with columns in the classical style", reports Lone Rider. Ron Gluckman wrote in Forbes Asia Magazine that the owners of Golden Boten City were looking out for new investors.
In March 2012 Vientiane Times reported that an unnamed Chinese investor had taken over and that Golden Boten City would become a casino-free zone and that the Lao goverment changed the area from a Special Economic Zone to a Specific Economic Zone. The move gives the Luang Namtha provincial administration greater power to control social and security issues. Officials said the new investor wanted to transform Boten Golden City into a tourism destination showcasing the Lue culture. The Lue ethnic group lives along the Lao, Thai and Chinese borders. The investor is said to have put the Lue culture on stage in Xishuangbana in Yunnan province (China) and in Chiang Mai province of Thailand.
In April 2012 came the news, that the Lao government signed a new agreement with Yunnan Hai Cheng Industrial Group Stock Co. and - surprisingly - again Wong Man Suen’s Hong Kong Fuk Hing Travel Entertainment Group. The investors are said to invest 500 Millions US-Dollars.
But until now not much has changed in Boten. Jack Kurtz, a photojournalist based in Bangkok, travelled to Oudomxay last month to document the effect of China’s investment on the landscape and local people. He found sparkling new shopping centres empty of customers – the goods are too expensive for the local people – and a landscape dotted with cranes, construction and trucks. The development, particularly the paving of the road, has transformed life for many in the province, drawing people down from homes in the mountains to earn a living from tourists or truck drivers who frequent the road.
Picture by Prince RoyThe Royal Hotel in Boten
Saturday, April 6, 2013
Chinese money brings big change:
A railway from the North of Laos to Vientiane
and Thailand
China has just opened the worlds longest Highspeed-Railway from Beijing in the north along 2298 km to the southern boom city of Guangzhou. There were a lot of international headlines around the first train on this line. And they helped to forget the big problems with Chinese Highspeed Trains as the Wenzou train collision in the not so far past.
But the Chinese Railway policy has much bigger ambitions. It is under way to create a Highspeed Railway System in Southeast Asia, linking China to Laos and Thailand and creating connections from China to Singapore.
Laos is forcing plans for a $7 billion railway link from the capital Vientiane in the South to the Chinese border in the North (passing the towns of Phonhong, Vangvieng, Luang Prabang, Oudomxay and Luang Namtha). The construction shall begin early in 2013. The line will be completed around 2014, said Laotian Deputy Prime Minister Somsavat Lengsavad at an international rail conference in Beijing. "While the exact route isn't clear, the rail line is expected to connect the southwest Chinese city of Kunming with Singapore, passing through Laos, Thailand and Malaysia", wrote wsj.com.
The project is financed by a 30-year loan from Export-Import Bank of China, according to rfa.org. China will be responsible for the construction. "Beijing is seeking to secure raw materials from neighboring countries to feed massive infrastructure investment and its manufacturing industry", wrote wsj.com. There is one more railway project in Laos: On December 24 a contract was signed for a US $5 billion railway line from Savannakhet to Lao Bao at Vietnam border. The construction is undertaken by Malaysian company Giant Consolidated, writes enjoy-laos.com.
Meanwhile preparations for four highspeed-railway lines in Thailand are going on. Funding is to come from a proposed 2-trillion-baht investment programme dedicated to new infrastructure projects over the next seven years. In November 2012 Finance Minister Kittiratt Na-Ranong said according to Bangkok Post the government is planning four high-speed rail lines to support trade and tourism within the country. The four high-speed rail lines are Bangkok-Nong Khai-Vientiane; Bangkok-Ayutthaya-Chiang Mai; Bangkok to Hua Hin; and an expansion of the Airport Rail Link in Bangkok to Chon Buri, Pattaya and Rayong. These plans are supported by a Study of Thailand Development Research Institute Foundation. And China is aggressively lobbying the Thai government to select its train and construction technology, writes Bangkok Post. Chinese Deputy Railways Minister Lu Chunfang told Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra that its construction costs average only US$20 million per kilometre compared with $81 million in Japan and $50 million in Germany. Thailand and China signed a memorandum of understanding on April 15 to conduct a feasibility study for the Bangkok-Chiang Mai and Bangkok-Nong Khai high-speed rail links. Thailands government plans to open international bidding early next year on the first phase of the high-speed rail project. Chinese government officials advising Thailand have suggested that it begins with a 54km route linking Bangkok and Ayutthaya as it would fall in line with the government's push to have the ancient capital serve as host for the 2020 World Expo, noted Bangkok Post.
Update from April 5 in 2013:
The ruling Party in Laos has given the go-ahead to the government to officially negotiate the controversial US-Dollar 7.2 billion loan with China to finance the high-speed railway project linking the two countries, notes Radio Free Asia.
Read also:
Growing Chinese influence in Cambodia: A railway from Preah Vihear, a steel plant and a seaport in Koh Kong
China and Laos: An Uneasy Embrace
by Prashanth Parameswaran for The Jamestown Foundation
Wednesday, February 6, 2013
Tours from Vientiane: Go tubing or
organic farming in Vang Vieng
See the locations on Vang Vieng Google Map by #treasuresoflaos
Picture by Stéphane P. ROUSSEAU
Picture by Ben and Debs Blench What Vang Vieng is famous for: tubing in Nam Song River
Picture by JonasPhoto
A lot of traffic on the river
Tubing in Vang Vieng - this is about fun among halfnaked young people, bars, drinks, bumping music, dancing, sometimes drugs, hangovers - and sometimes accidents: People jump into the river and break their bones on rocks or people drink too much, cannot swim and drown. It's about the same things as every where on the world, where young people go for fun and partying. Read how Adventurous Kate sees it. And she writes about Death and Dangers. See also the restaurant menue with opium tea and mushroom magics, documented on Blog of the Morning Calm. Then see this video on youtube.com about a broken skull. On Global Post an article asks: Vang Vieng, Laos: backpacker mecca turned disaster magnet? and offers a lot of insight. For example: The Vang Vieng region had 90 hotels/guesthouses in 2003; in 2009 there were 222. More insights on guardian.co.uk: Vang Vieng, Laos: the world's most unlikely party town
Vang Vieng: By discoveryindochina.com
Hotels and Resorts in Vang Vieng
Riverside Boutique Resort: Pool with amazing view, balconies with view of the scenery, breakfast with many options according to reviews on tripadvisor.com.
Amari Vang Vieng: Balconies with stunning view of Nam Song River and the mountains. Largest hotel in Vang Vieng with good service and also a gym and a good restaurant according to reviews on tripadvisor.com.
Diamond Gold Hotel (Formerly Thavonsouk Hotel and Resort): "One of the most beautiful locations", according to tripadvisor.com. See a video about the early morining view from the porch of a ropm by Prince Roy.
Picture by Prince Roy
View from the porch of the riverside room
Picture by madaboutasia
Vansana Vang Vieng Resort: Quite good reviews on tripadvisor.com
Guesthouses in Vang Vieng
Domon River Guesthouse: Spacious rooms with balcony looking over the river towards the mountains. No breakfast. Can be noisy until early in the morning because bars are around. See pictures on tripadvisor.com
Kamphone Guesthouse: Phone (023) 511 062. "The location at the north end of town is far enough from the party that it's quiet at night, but thin walls mean you can hear your neighbours", comments travelfish.org
Malany Villa 1: Mixed reviews on tripadvisor.com
Happy Riverview Hotel: Quite good reviews on tripadvisor.com
Picture by careybaird
Nana Guesthouse:
Pan's Place: Rooms and bungalows, run by a Lao lady and an old hippie from New Zealand. Very good reviews on tripadvisor.com, it's quiet. See view from Pan's Place on flickr.com
Phoubane Guesthouse: "If you want cheap accomodation this is what you get", notes one review von tripadvisor.com
Saphaothong Guesthouse: "Like many of the other aging guesthouses in town, Saphaothong's fixtures and fittings are fading fast compared to the shiny new developments", a guest comments on travelblog.org.
Sisavang Guesthouse: From 8 USD.
Thavisouk Hotel & Resort: A main building and bungalows. Mixed reviews on tripadvisor.com
Viengvilay Guesthouse:
Villa Nam Song: Very good reviews on tripadvisor.com
Stay outside Vang Vieng
Inthavong Guesthouse: Has a swimming pool - "not maintained and dirty", notes one guest on tripadvisors.com about the pool.
Maylyn Guesthouse: From 40 000 Kip. On the west side of Nam Song River. A twenty minutes walk from town (you have to cross a toll bridge for 4000 Kip). 15 bungalow rooms in a lush garden full of butterflies. "The slightly wild gardens, teaming with gorgeous butterflies (particularly in the early morning hours) hold charmingly basic wooden bungalows and bamboo terrace rooms", notes travelfish.org. Very good reviews on tripadvisor.com. Bicycles can be rented. See video by mrbund
Picture by Sven&Moniek
May Lyn Guesthouse
Vang Vieng Eco Lodge: From 29 USD. Ban Viengsamay. The Ecolodge is just past Viengsamy, 8 kms north of Vang Vieng and a 15 minute drive from the town centre. Basic rooms in bungalows with fan, no aircon. The restaurant on a deck overlooks the Nam Song river. Kayaks can be rented. "The staff can arrange a tuk tuk to city centre for about 40.000 kip (one way). Back the prices are a bit higher, maybe 50.000 kip", notes Bosbreur on tripadvisor.com. A quiet location for people, who want to join Lao local life. Small shop in the village nearby. See a video by Hennephof of youtube.com
Join the organic experience in Vang Vieng
Organic farm: 4 km north of the town in the village of Phoudindaeng. Vangvieng Organic Farm promotes the use of natural materials and traditional methods for growing its crops and raising its animals. It offers accommodation for visitors and volunteers and operates an organic food restaurant. The Farm is located in the village of Phoudindaeng, about 4 km north of Vangvieng on the banks of the Nam Song river. Organic Farm was founded by Thanongsi Sorangkoun in 1996 with the goal of introducing organic farming methods in an area where chemicals and deforestation were ruining the land. The farm produces mulberry trees, mulberry tea and mulberry vine as well as banana liquor, organic fruits, vegetables, poultry and goat cheese.
Picture by thomaswanhoff
Guest house at organic farm
Picture by thomaswanhoff
Mulberry plantation
Discover the limestone caves in Vang Vieng
Tham Phu Kham: About six kilometres south of the town, half an hour bei Tuk-Tuk. Climb 600ft up boulders and the rockface, to get to the entrance, then climb down into the cavern with its reclining Buddha (see picture). Read laos.eegc.org.
Picture by juliansong
Tham Chiang: Also: Tham Jiang, Tham Chang. In the Vang Vieng Resort complex. Easy to access. It was used by the local people as a bunker in defense against the Jiin Haw (Yunnanese Chinese) in the early 19th century. At the base of the cave its possible to swim 80m into the cave. Beautiful views of Vang Vieng from the entry. Read more on laos.eegc.org
.
Picture by Gusjer
The path towards the mountain, where Tham Chiang cave is inside
Picture by Rory OBrien
Picture Rory OBrien
Pretty river for swimming near the entrance of Tham Chiang cave
Tham Lom: About 3 km from the town. Read more on laos.eegc.org
Tham Nam Xang (Elephant Cave): At km 48 on Route 13. Near Tham Xang village. Head towards the river, cross the bridge and about 100 m ahead is the cave. You find here an sanctuary, over 300 years older than the Lane Xang Kingdom: 5 large pink sandstone sculptures and 2 huge Buddha images. Read more and on laos.eegc.org
Picture by Pigalle
Tham Hoi: Read more on laos.eegc.org
Tham Loup: Read more on laos.eegc.org
Day tour to caves by greendiscoverylaos.com
Read more about on tubing down a cave
Tham None: One of the biggest caves in Vang Vieng, it served as a rescue shelter during the Second Indochina War. Today it is home to a bat colony and The Magic Stone of Vang Vieng.
Climb the limestone carsts
The limestone carst landscape around Vang Vieng attracts rock climbers. Green Discovery and Adam's Climbing School offer half- and fullday courses with their instructors. More informations on summitpost.org
Go kayaking
Kayaking is offered by Green Discovery Laos and often starts at Viengsamay, a Khmu village about 10 km north of Vang Vieng and goes down Nam Song River, see video on youtube. But there is also a day trip to Nam Lik, a very scenic river. Also Vang Vieng Tours offer kayaking trips.
Go for birds on Nong Nok
Nong Nok (bird lake) at Ban Sivilay Village, a community-managed birds sanctuary with hundreds of ducks and egrets roosting here.
See Vang Vieng Area Map by Hobomaps.
Picture by Stéphane P. ROUSSEAU
Picture by Ben and Debs Blench What Vang Vieng is famous for: tubing in Nam Song River
Picture by JonasPhoto
A lot of traffic on the river
Tubing in Vang Vieng - this is about fun among halfnaked young people, bars, drinks, bumping music, dancing, sometimes drugs, hangovers - and sometimes accidents: People jump into the river and break their bones on rocks or people drink too much, cannot swim and drown. It's about the same things as every where on the world, where young people go for fun and partying. Read how Adventurous Kate sees it. And she writes about Death and Dangers. See also the restaurant menue with opium tea and mushroom magics, documented on Blog of the Morning Calm. Then see this video on youtube.com about a broken skull. On Global Post an article asks: Vang Vieng, Laos: backpacker mecca turned disaster magnet? and offers a lot of insight. For example: The Vang Vieng region had 90 hotels/guesthouses in 2003; in 2009 there were 222. More insights on guardian.co.uk: Vang Vieng, Laos: the world's most unlikely party town
Vang Vieng: By discoveryindochina.com
Hotels and Resorts in Vang Vieng
Riverside Boutique Resort: Pool with amazing view, balconies with view of the scenery, breakfast with many options according to reviews on tripadvisor.com.
Amari Vang Vieng: Balconies with stunning view of Nam Song River and the mountains. Largest hotel in Vang Vieng with good service and also a gym and a good restaurant according to reviews on tripadvisor.com.
Diamond Gold Hotel (Formerly Thavonsouk Hotel and Resort): "One of the most beautiful locations", according to tripadvisor.com. See a video about the early morining view from the porch of a ropm by Prince Roy.
Picture by Prince RoyView from the porch of the riverside room
Picture by madaboutasiaVansana Vang Vieng Resort: Quite good reviews on tripadvisor.com
Guesthouses in Vang Vieng
Domon River Guesthouse: Spacious rooms with balcony looking over the river towards the mountains. No breakfast. Can be noisy until early in the morning because bars are around. See pictures on tripadvisor.com
Kamphone Guesthouse: Phone (023) 511 062. "The location at the north end of town is far enough from the party that it's quiet at night, but thin walls mean you can hear your neighbours", comments travelfish.org
Malany Villa 1: Mixed reviews on tripadvisor.com
Happy Riverview Hotel: Quite good reviews on tripadvisor.com
Picture by careybaird
Nana Guesthouse:
Pan's Place: Rooms and bungalows, run by a Lao lady and an old hippie from New Zealand. Very good reviews on tripadvisor.com, it's quiet. See view from Pan's Place on flickr.com
Phoubane Guesthouse: "If you want cheap accomodation this is what you get", notes one review von tripadvisor.com
Saphaothong Guesthouse: "Like many of the other aging guesthouses in town, Saphaothong's fixtures and fittings are fading fast compared to the shiny new developments", a guest comments on travelblog.org.
Sisavang Guesthouse: From 8 USD.
Thavisouk Hotel & Resort: A main building and bungalows. Mixed reviews on tripadvisor.com
Viengvilay Guesthouse:
Villa Nam Song: Very good reviews on tripadvisor.com
Stay outside Vang Vieng
Inthavong Guesthouse: Has a swimming pool - "not maintained and dirty", notes one guest on tripadvisors.com about the pool.
Maylyn Guesthouse: From 40 000 Kip. On the west side of Nam Song River. A twenty minutes walk from town (you have to cross a toll bridge for 4000 Kip). 15 bungalow rooms in a lush garden full of butterflies. "The slightly wild gardens, teaming with gorgeous butterflies (particularly in the early morning hours) hold charmingly basic wooden bungalows and bamboo terrace rooms", notes travelfish.org. Very good reviews on tripadvisor.com. Bicycles can be rented. See video by mrbund
Picture by Sven&MoniekMay Lyn Guesthouse
Vang Vieng Eco Lodge: From 29 USD. Ban Viengsamay. The Ecolodge is just past Viengsamy, 8 kms north of Vang Vieng and a 15 minute drive from the town centre. Basic rooms in bungalows with fan, no aircon. The restaurant on a deck overlooks the Nam Song river. Kayaks can be rented. "The staff can arrange a tuk tuk to city centre for about 40.000 kip (one way). Back the prices are a bit higher, maybe 50.000 kip", notes Bosbreur on tripadvisor.com. A quiet location for people, who want to join Lao local life. Small shop in the village nearby. See a video by Hennephof of youtube.com
Join the organic experience in Vang Vieng
Organic farm: 4 km north of the town in the village of Phoudindaeng. Vangvieng Organic Farm promotes the use of natural materials and traditional methods for growing its crops and raising its animals. It offers accommodation for visitors and volunteers and operates an organic food restaurant. The Farm is located in the village of Phoudindaeng, about 4 km north of Vangvieng on the banks of the Nam Song river. Organic Farm was founded by Thanongsi Sorangkoun in 1996 with the goal of introducing organic farming methods in an area where chemicals and deforestation were ruining the land. The farm produces mulberry trees, mulberry tea and mulberry vine as well as banana liquor, organic fruits, vegetables, poultry and goat cheese.
Picture by thomaswanhoffGuest house at organic farm
Picture by thomaswanhoffMulberry plantation
Discover the limestone caves in Vang Vieng
Tham Phu Kham: About six kilometres south of the town, half an hour bei Tuk-Tuk. Climb 600ft up boulders and the rockface, to get to the entrance, then climb down into the cavern with its reclining Buddha (see picture). Read laos.eegc.org.
Picture by juliansong
Tham Chiang: Also: Tham Jiang, Tham Chang. In the Vang Vieng Resort complex. Easy to access. It was used by the local people as a bunker in defense against the Jiin Haw (Yunnanese Chinese) in the early 19th century. At the base of the cave its possible to swim 80m into the cave. Beautiful views of Vang Vieng from the entry. Read more on laos.eegc.org
.
Picture by GusjerThe path towards the mountain, where Tham Chiang cave is inside
Picture by Rory OBrien
Picture Rory OBrienPretty river for swimming near the entrance of Tham Chiang cave
Tham Lom: About 3 km from the town. Read more on laos.eegc.org
Tham Nam Xang (Elephant Cave): At km 48 on Route 13. Near Tham Xang village. Head towards the river, cross the bridge and about 100 m ahead is the cave. You find here an sanctuary, over 300 years older than the Lane Xang Kingdom: 5 large pink sandstone sculptures and 2 huge Buddha images. Read more and on laos.eegc.org
Picture by PigalleTham Hoi: Read more on laos.eegc.org
Tham Loup: Read more on laos.eegc.org
Day tour to caves by greendiscoverylaos.com
Read more about on tubing down a cave
Tham None: One of the biggest caves in Vang Vieng, it served as a rescue shelter during the Second Indochina War. Today it is home to a bat colony and The Magic Stone of Vang Vieng.
Climb the limestone carsts
The limestone carst landscape around Vang Vieng attracts rock climbers. Green Discovery and Adam's Climbing School offer half- and fullday courses with their instructors. More informations on summitpost.org
Go kayaking
Kayaking is offered by Green Discovery Laos and often starts at Viengsamay, a Khmu village about 10 km north of Vang Vieng and goes down Nam Song River, see video on youtube. But there is also a day trip to Nam Lik, a very scenic river. Also Vang Vieng Tours offer kayaking trips.
Go for birds on Nong Nok
Nong Nok (bird lake) at Ban Sivilay Village, a community-managed birds sanctuary with hundreds of ducks and egrets roosting here.
See Vang Vieng Area Map by Hobomaps.
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