Viet-Laos Xekaman I HPP

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The Xekaman 1 Hydropower company was formed to build hydropower projects in Attapeu province, Laos. The project was developed through Xekaman-1 Power by the Vietnam-Laos Electricity Investment and Development Company , which is a 70/30 joint venture between Vietnam's Viet-Lao Power and the state-owned utility Electricite du Laos. Viet-Lao Power is a consortium of Vietnamese companies led by the Song Da Construction Company. Holdings breakdown within the consortium was not publicly disclosed at financial close. The project concession was signed on a Build, Operate, Transfer (BOT) basis with a duration of 30 years, after which the plant would be transferred to the Lao government. Initial capacity was to be 322 MW, comprising of two plants; the 290 MW Xekaman 1 and 32 MW Xekaman Sanxay. Expected to be fully operational by 2014, the plant was designed to generate 1.2 billion kWh of electricity annually. Of the electricity produced, 80% will be exported to Vietnam through a specially constructed 500kV transmission line and sold to the state-owned Electricity of Vietnam (EVN). Vietnam's Ministry of Industry and Trade has negotiated a Power purchase agreement between the Song Da Group and EVN. The remaining 20% of generated power will be distributed through the state-owned grid for consumption in Laos. Engineering, Procurement, and Construction (EPC) contract was awarded to Song Da Corporation of Vietnam. Construction began on March 6, 2011, and was to be completed within four years. The PDA was signed in March 2008 and a PPA with EDL for 20% of the output was signed in November 2010, 20% of production was to be consumed in Laos, the remaining 80% was to be exported to Vietnam via a 500 kV transmission line. Total project cost was estimated to be US$ 441 million. At the time, the project was the largest investment by any Vietnamese company or consortium into Laos. August 2012: Vietnam Development Bank (VDB) closed a loan of VND1.84 trillion (US$88.3 million) on July 3rd 2012, following an earlier loan of VND300 billion (US$14.4 million) in September 2011. These loans provided 30% of the funding, estimated at VND6.14 trillion (note: different than US$441 million reported earlier). http://vietnambusiness.asia/tag/xekaman-1-hydropower-plant/ http://www.docstoc.com/docs/39375076/Electric-Power-Plants-in-Laos http://laovoices.com/laos-vietnam-ink-deal-to-build-xekaman-1-hydro-plant/