According to the Ministry of Energy and Mines, Laos had 7,075 MW of installed generation capacity as of 2017, including 5,174 MW of hydropower, 1,878 MW of thermal power, and 600 kW of solar photovoltaics. State-owned utility Électricité du Laos (EDL) owns 191 MW directly and 622 MW indirectly through its EDL-Generation Public Company (EDL-Gen) subsidiary, while independent power producers for the domestic market own 1,509 MW and 4,727 MW for the export market.
Domestic demand has been increasing an average of 15 percent a year, partially driven by growing access to the grid, with a renewable energy strategy developed in 2011 that includes a 30 percent renewable energy target. According to the Asian Development Bank, there is additional planned generation capacity totaling 9,400 MW either under construction or in development slated to come online through 2023.
USAID Clean Power Asia has obtained government buy-in to conduct the first-ever solar auction in Laos and has completed guidelines for conducting feasibility studies for solar, wind, and biomass projects in Laos.