Experts study power project for Ayeyawady

Experts from Belgium are reviewing research conducted by government experts on the feasibility of generating power by constructing sluice gates on the Ayeyawady River to begin generating power in 2015, Tun Lwin Oo, director general of Directorate of Water Resources and Improvement of River Systems, said earlier this week.

The statement follows an announcement last month in the capital that consultants from the Belgian firm SBE Co. Ltd. would begin studying the feasibility of the project at a site along the river near Yandapo village in Mandalay Region.

Transport Minister Nyan Tun Aung hailed the pilot project as a landmark, saying the feasibility study should be completed within six months. He stressed that the public would be kept informed about the project and said it would be implemented “under the guidance of President Thein Sein”.

“Only after a feasibility study has been conducted, will it be submitted to the parliament,” he said. “The research findings and possible impacts will be made public. If the project goes against the wishes of the people, we won’t proceed.”

The river’s course from Myitkyina to Pyay will be maintained and sluice gates will be built in Singu, Inwa, Pakokku, Myinmu and Chauk, according to the project proposal.

Tun Lwin Oo said hydropower would be used for local consumption and six to eight generators installed at the sluice gates with 180 MW to 240 MW generated in total.

 

source: Eleven Myanmar

http://www.elevenmyanmar.com/business/2145-experts-study-power-project-for-ayeyawady