Agriculture Centres Offer Chance for Development
Khounkham, May 16, 2018
The Theun-Hinboun Power Company (THPC) has handed over four agricultural development centres to district authorities in Bolikhamxay province to help foster sustainable livelihoods in the area.
The agriculture centres, in the villages of Nongxong, Sopphouan and Phonthong in Khamkeuth District, and in Ban Keosenkham, Xaychamphone District, were run by THPC to demonstrate cropping and livestock rearing techniques during the resettlement phase of the Theun-Hinboun Expansion Project, from 2008 to 2017.
Each centre features around a hectare of agricultural land, with greenhouses, livestock plots, trial fields and gardens. They are also equipped with administrative buildings and accommodation for staff. According to Vongchanh Indavong, a senior manager with THPC's Sustainability Division, the centres were built as demonstration and training centres for livelihood restoration activities during the expansion project’s consultation and planning process. The centres then housed extension teams who worked with villagers and district staff.
With most households in the resettlement villages approaching or surpassing the income targets set out in THPC’s 
License Agreement with the government, the Theun-Hinboun project has entered its next phase, during which support is given to help communities achieve sustainable development without dependence on the company. District Agriculture and Forestry Offices are therefore assuming control of the centres along with village development committees.
Ms Vongchanh said that THPC would contribute towards operating costs at the centres for the next three years and was also hopeful that new partners would be interested in assisting the district offices with extension work. “The centres have the pote
ntial to help villagers set up supply links to local markets, notably at Lak Xao and Khounkham,” she explained. “THPC has previously invited experts from the National Agriculture and Forestry Research Institute to work at the centres, and we believe that other organisations or private companies could use the facilities here to implement positive agricultural work in line with their mandates”.
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Theun-Hinboun Marks 20 Years of Power Generation
New Book Theun-Hinboun: 20 Years of Operations available for download
The Lao Government and the Theun-Hinboun Power Company (THPC) celebrated the twentieth anniversary of operations at the Theun-Hinboun Hydropower Project in Vientiane on March 31.
Commercial operations began at Theun-Hinboun on March 31 1998, and since then the plant has generated over 36,000 Gigawatt hours of electricity, which is more electricity than has been consumed in Laos over the same period.
Deputy Prime Minister Dr Bounthong Chitmany said that Theun-Hinboun was a Lao success story, having made a vital contribution to the development of the country over the last 20 years.
THPC, which is 60% owned by EDL-Generation and 98% staffed by Lao nationals, has contributed over US$500 million to the state in its first 20 years of operations and is set to increase payments in coming years thanks to measures to expand production and make generation more efficient. Dividends paid by THPC to the state shareholder have so already provided a 500% return on the initial investment, in addition to the significant contribution made by the project through royalties and taxes.
Dr Khammany Inthirath, Minister of Energy and Mines, noted that Theun-Hinboun has had an important influence on national socio-economic development since 1998. When the plant first went online it raised GDP by an estimated 7% and was, for the next six years, the biggest earner of foreign currency in the country.
“The Theun-Hinboun project has improved the living standards of all ethnic peoples,” added Dr Khammany, “playing a vital role in implementing the strategy for rural development, poverty alleviation, and the development of the Lao PDR as a regional energy link”.
According to THPC’s General Manager, Robert Allen, THPC’s mission for the next 20 years is to continue contributing to the socio-economic development of the Lao PDR through income, human-resource and technical improvements, environmental protection and community investment, and to prepare the hydropower facility for government control at the end of the company’s concession period.
Hydro companies power up technical student awareness
Vientiane Times April 30, 2018
Nam Theun 2 Power Company (NTPC), Theun Hinboun Power Company (THPC), and Faculty of Engineering, National University of Laos conducted a seminar for Lao German Technical College (LGTC) students to raise awareness about hydropower and enhance capacity building in the sector.
The Hydropower Day took place at the vocational college and was attended by NTPC representative, Mr Anouphone Bouthavong, College Deputy Director, Mr Koukeo Phommavongsa and around 200 LGTC students.
Deputy Director General of the Department of Technical and Vocational Education, Ministry of Education and Sports, Mr Somlith Virivong told the seminar that the college needed to collaborate with the private sector including hydropower companies. He said the seminar was part of long-term cooperation in vocational training and economic development between the Lao-German Technical College in Vientiane and NTPC and THPC.
“This includes training courses for electronic technicians and on electrical and procedural components. Both sides value the equality of male and female students and want to integrate both into the courses,” he said.The seminar also sought to strengthen cooperation and the partnership between the hydropower companies and the leading vocational institutions in Laos as well as raising students’ interest in the hydropower sector and the employment opportunities it can offer at the end of their studies, he added.
Students had the opportunity to learn about hydropower and its high potential in Laos; the case study of the Nam Theun 2 and Theun Hinboun projects was also presented by professionals from both leading hydropower companies.
The seminar will be also carried out for students of Khammuan Technical-Vocational College early next month. Since the LGTC is closely connected with Germany and its (unique) dual training system, their objective is to include more and more companies in the training courses on offer, in order to provide a practice-oriented vocational education. Compared to the German system, in which vocational training is split up between vocational schools (theory) and the companies (practice), the LGTC developed a system whereby both parts are (partly) combined in the College.
Companies use the variety of machines and training devices in the College to offer training courses they cannot provide in their own workshop due to the lack of machines or personnel. Whenever possible, companies offer in-company training in their own workshops. The LGTC cooperates with many different local and international companies such as Toyota and RMA Ford in the automotive section, Phu Bia Mining in the metal and electrical sections, Kubota in the agro-machinery section, Endress Hauser and Nam Theun 2 Power Company in the electrics section, and BHS Corrugated in the electric and mechanic section.
THPC and Golfers Help Blind School and Chess Players
To help mark its twentieth year of operations, on January 27 the Theun-Hinboun Power Company (THPC) organised a charity golf tournament in aid of the Thongpong School for Blind Children and the Lao Chess Federation.
Held at the Long-Vien golf club in Vientiane, the event was chaired by H.E. Phankham Viphavanh, Vice President of the Lao PDR, and was open to all interested golfers. THPC funded the golf fees, refreshments and prizes for all players, meaning the entrance fees of the participants could be donated to charity.
Over 80 million kip was raised in total, and on January 31 Mr Soulideth Baomanikhoth, THPC’s Deputy General Manager, handed over 55 million kip to the Thongpong School for Blind Children and 25 million kip to the Lao Chess Federation, which organises chess competitions nationwide. The donations were gratefully accepted by Dr Siphetthavong Sisaleumsak, Director of the Ophthalmology Center at Thongpong, and Mr Inthawa Vilavanh of the Lao Chess Federation.