Cambodia spends 59 mln USD to import electricity in 2009

PHNOM PENH, Mar. 15, 2010 (Xinhua) -- Cambodia spent 59 million U.S. dollars on electricity imports from Thailand and Vietnam last year, local media reported on Monday, citing figures of the Ministry of Industry, Mines and Energy.

The Kingdom purchased 226.76 billion kilowatt-hours in 2009 from Thailand for 19 million U.S. dollars, and 500.74 billion kWh from Vietnam for 40 million U.S. dollars.

New factories and apartment buildings had led to rising electricity demands, Ty Thany, director of the Department of Finance and Price Setting at the ministry was quoted by the Phnom Penh Post as saying.

"We will import 25 to 30 percent (of our electricity supply) for this year in order to reduce costly local power generation," Ty Thany was quoted as saying.

Cambodia buys electricity from Thailand at 2.7 baht (0.083 U.S. dollar) per kWh and from Vietnam at 0.08 U.S. dollar per kWh compared with a cost of 0.18-0.20 U.S. dollar per kWh using oil- powered generators.

"We may be able to reduce imports of electricity in 2013 because we will have hydroelectric dams and coal power plants to generate electricity by ourselves then," he added.

The Ministry of Industry forecasts that Cambodia will require about 400 megawatts of electricity this year, 50 percent more than current domestic supply.

Thailand finances Cambodian power grid to electrify Angkor Wat

Wed, 30 Jan 2008
DPA

Bangkok - The Export-Import Bank of Thailand and the (ADB) have agreed to Asian Development Bankprovide 14 million dollars to finance the construction of transmission lines across the Thai-Cambodian border, EXIM Thailand announced Wednesday. "The construction undertaken by (Cambodia) Power Transmission Lines Company Limited aims to supply electricity for the growing industrial and tourism sectors in Cambodia," bank president Apichai Boontherawara.

The banks have joined with Advisors/Arco Capital Management Family of Funds (Arco) and Cambodia's Foreign Trade Bank (FTB) to provide a total of 20 million dollars to finance the power transmission lines construction for electricity imports from Thailand.

The total package, with 7 million from EXIM Thailand and ADB, 4 million from Arco and 2 million from FTB, will finance the construction of 115-kilovolt double-circuit transmission lines running approximately 221 kilometers from Thailand's Aranyaprathet district in Sa Kaeo province to Banteay Meanchey, Battambang and Siem Reap in Cambodia, home to the famed Angkor Wat temple complex.