Laos dams

UNESCO experts insist that a huge dam would destroy the “authenticity and integrity” of the World Heritage Site in Laos.

While China is critically important, the current debt crisis in Laos is about much more than Beijing.

The Phou Ngoy dam is one of nine hydropower projects that the Lao government is planning on the mainstream of the Mekong River.

Analyzing Chinese dams in Laos provides insight into the local origins and drivers of the BRI, particularly along China’s borderland regions.

The dam near Luang Prabang - both a World Heritage site and an seismically active zone - is “an irresponsible gamble,” experts argue.

The deal will deepen China's involvement in the Lao government's goal of transforming itself into the "battery of Southeast Asia."

The U.N.'s cultural agency fears that the project might endanger the World Heritage-listed town of Luang Prabang.

The Lao communist party's newly selected General Secretary Thongloun Sisoulith once promised change. Now he sits atop a closed and sclerotic system.

But costs and competition could leave the putative "battery of Southeast Asia" running on empty.

Another Mekong dam project threatens to cost the former royal capital its UNESCO World Heritage status.

The Thai concerns about the Sanakham dam come amid growing recognition of the dire state of the Mekong.