Xinhua
June 12, 2002

China has nearly completed the Three Gorges dam along the Yangtze River, so equipment can be moved for use at the Salween dams project [in Burma],’ the president of the Thai utility EGAT is quoted as saying.

Bangkok: Thailand and Myanmar [Burma] planned to sign on Friday a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) on joint investment in building a series of hydroelectric dams on the Salween River in Myanmar, President of EGAT Public Company Limited Kraisi Kanasuta said on Tuesday. Kraisi said the construction of five dams had been planned along the Salween River and is expected, when completed, to generate a total capacity of more than 10,000 megawatts of power. The project is designed not only to secure electricity for Thailand, but also to generate much-needed income for Myanmar while Thailand will benefit from low cost electricity, he said. The project could also help support an integrated power grid plan of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), according to Kraisi. On Friday EGAT, formerly a state enterprise known as the Electricity Generating Authority of Thailand, would sign the MOU with Myanmar’s state electricity organization to jointly invest in construction of the series of dams along the Salween River, he confirmed. The energy ministers of the two countries will witness the signing ceremony, he said. The Hat Gyi Hydroelectric Dam is expected to be the first of the series of dams to be built, he said, taking five to six years to complete, for a capacity of 1,200 megawatts. The dam is near the Thai-Myanmar border, opposite Mae Sot district of Thailand’s northwestern Tak Province. China has expressed interest in joining the project, he said, adding that the Chinese participation is expected to reduce the cost of construction. "China has nearly completed the Three Gorges Dam along the Yangtze River, so equipment can be moved for use at the Salween dams project," Kraisi said. Further discussions must be conducted before deciding on China’s participation, the EGAT president said.