Laos, Cambodia Advance ASEAN Power Grid
On 25 May, Laos and Cambodia signed a joint framework agreement in Phnom Penh to launch a feasibility study on a cross-border power grid interconnection.
The goal is to advance key regional energy priorities under the ASEAN Plan of Action for Energy Cooperation (APAEC) 2026-2030.
State-owned utilities from both countries signed the agreement, with the ASEAN Center for Energy co-signing and coordinating the World Bank-funded initiative.
Researchers will assess technical standards, legal frameworks, and transmission strategies needed to enable electricity trade between the two neighbours.
The ASEAN Power Grid targets a 30 percent renewable energy share in total primary energy supply and 45 percent in installed power capacity by 2030, built around three objectives: strengthening regional energy connectivity, enhancing energy security, accelerating decarbonisation, and advancing inclusive energy development.
The Laos-Cambodia agreement adds a southern corridor to an already expanding regional grid. In late April, Laos and China activated a new 500 kV transmission line capable of carrying up to three billion kilowatt-hours annually from Oudomxay, including output from Laos’ largest solar farm, a 1,000 megawatts (MW) project generating approximately 1.65 billion kilowatt-hour per year.
The link made Laos the first country to trade renewable power directly into China’s electricity grid.
Laos also supplies clean energy well beyond its immediate neighbors.
The Laos-Thailand-Malaysia-Singapore Power Integration Project has transmitted Lao hydropower to Singapore via Thailand and Malaysia since 2022, the first multilateral cross-border electricity trade among four ASEAN countries. The project now operates at full expanded capacity, doubling its total to 200 MW, with Laos as the primary upstream supplier.
source: https://laotiantimes.com/2026/05/26/laos-cambodia-advance-asean-power-grid/
