Vientiane, March 24, 2017
The Theun-Hinboun Power Company (THPC) now has an overall generating capacity of 520 megawatts (MW) following the recent completion of a major overhaul. Efficiency tests conducted on a second new turbine installed at the company’s Theun-Hinboun Powerhouse in Khammouane province confirmed that the overhaul has added at least 20 MW of production capacity, while the plant uses the same volume of water as before the upgrade.

Replacement of the turbine and maintenance of the generator for the TH1 Unit was undertaken between December 2016 and February this year by staff from THPC’s Operations and Maintenance Division (OMD), alongside engineers from Rainpower and GE in Norway.

The work was completed one week ahead of schedule, allowing the upgraded unit to go into production in late February, alongside the TH2 unit, which received a similar upgrade last year. The two units, now rated at 120 MW each at full load, first began operating in March 1998. With the 220-MW TH3 unit and the two 30-MW units at the project’s upstream Nam Gnouang Powerhouse, installed as part of the Theun-Hinboun Expansion Project in 2012, THPC now has a maximum operating capacity of 520 MW.

THPC’s Deputy General Manager, Soulideth Baomanikhoth, congratulated the company’s OMD team and the contractors for finishing the work ahead of tight deadlines and with a perfect safety record. “This investment increases both the long-term efficiency and safety of our plant,” said Mr Soulideth. “We can now increase our contribution to the Lao economy by exporting more power while using no more water”.

THPC has so far contributed over US$465 million to the government since starting operations. With 60% of its shares owned by EDL-Gen, THPC is the only independent power producer in the country under Lao majority control, and 99% of the company’s workforce are Lao nationals.