19 April 2011
By Guy Delauney
BBC News, Cambodia
The four member countries of the Mekong River Commission are meeting to make a final decision on whether to allow the construction of a controversial dam.
The proposed hydropower project at Xayaburi would be the first to be built on the main-stream of the lower Mekong.
Laos is hoping to become “the battery of southeast Asia”.
The Mekong River Commission’s ruling may determine whether the river stays a food resource for millions of people, or becomes a source of power instead.
Laos’s plans mean using its rivers to generate electricity for export, thereby gaining income to develop the country – which is fine when the waterways in question are wholly within Laos.
It is rather more complicated when they are shared with neighbouring countries, as is the proposed Xayaburi dam and power station.
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