Vietnam Starts Building Southeast Asia's Largest Hydropower Plant
Construction of the 2,400-MW Son La Hydropower Plant, the largest of its kind in Southeast Asia and one of the world’s ten biggest hydropower plants, started today in It Ong commune, Muong La district of northern Son La province.
Prime Minister Phan Van Khai presided over the breaking ground ceremony for the country’s largest single investment project so far.
The six-turbine plant has total investment of VND36.933 trillion (US$2.33 billion), and is scheduled for completion in 2013. The first turbine will be put into operation in 2010.
It is designed to provide 10.22 billion kWh of electricity each year for the national power grid. The plant will also play a key role in irrigation work and flood prevention for the Red River region, as well as in national security and defense, according to State media.
The project was designed with consultations between Vietnamese experts and Russia's Moscow Hydrodynamics Designing Institute. The Song Da corporation was appointed as the general contractor and 12 other units as sub-contractors.
About 12,400 households have had to be moved for the construction of the Son La hydroelectric power plant.
The Son La plant is the second hydropower plant on the Da River after the 1,920-MW Hoa Binh plant which went on stream in 1998. The Lai Chau, Huoi Quang, and Ban Chat power plants are in the works.
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