Price of household energy storage power supply in Laos

Although a small percentage compared to total consumption in Laos, the amount of re-imported energy tells a bigger story: According to data from EDL, the state-run firm sells electricity to neighboring countries such as the Electricity Generating Authority of Thailand (EGAT) at a slightly lower price than what it pays to re-import from it.

To maintain power supply stability, she suggested that Laos diversify its sources of power to include more solar and wind energy. The price of both has dropped globally and, based on data collected by the Stimson Centre, the price of these renewables is also getting cheaper in the Mekong region.

According to data from the World Bank, the electricity rate for business purposes in Laos is 13.2 US cents per one kWh. This price is marginally cheaper than in Thailand, where it is 13.7 US cents per one kWh. Electricity for business purposes in Vietnam costs just 12.5 US cents per one kWh.

As there were many power plants in the Lao PDR generating electricity for export in 2018, the export figure reached 26,708 gigawatt-hours (GWh), the equivalent of 2.65 Mtoe. This amounted to more than half of all electricity consumed in the country and 77% of total hydropower generation.

According to the data, the average price of electricity in Laos increased by about 1.5% annually from 2013 to 2018 before seeing a 3% drop in 2019 due to a price-restructuring policy designed to lower electricity rates for households that consume less than 150kWh a month, which EDL classifies as poor families. In 2021, EDL raised prices by 2%.

"The production cost of electricity in Thailand is probably higher than in Laos because of the contribution of oil and gas generation,” said a senior official at the Energy Policy and Planning Department, Ministry of Energy and Mines, adding that EDL has been negotiating with EGAT to make sure that the export and import price is about the same.