GreenergyDaily

Mar. 6, 2025

1. Nam Ou Power, a unit of state-owned Power Construction Corp of China, has sued Laos utility Electricite du Laos in Singapore for $555 million in unpaid dues from a hydropower project it operates, an arbitration filing reviewed by Reuters shows.

2. EdL has yet to respond to the filing, according to a source familiar with the case, who also said that it was the first instance of international arbitration by a Chinese state-run entity against a Laos government-run firm.

3. The unpaid dues claimed arise from electricity generated from the $2.73 billion Nam Ou River Cascade Hydropower project, according to a filing with the Singapore International Arbitration Centre.

4. The Nam Ou project, one of Laos' largest that accounts for 7% of the country's 18 gigawatts of hydropower capacity, is a part of China's Belt and Road Initiative to build trade and transport links across Asia and beyond.

5. Operated by Nam Ou Power, part of PowerChina the hydroelectric project has a capacity of 1.27 gigawatts from its seven cascades along 350 km (217 miles) of river in the landlocked, mountainous country of nearly eight million people.