Context
Due to its relatively high annual rainfall and the geographical proximity to the Mekong River, Laos PDR has been providing most of the country’s electricity from hydro electricity generation. On the other hand, the country is also experiencing an increasing demand for and reliance on imported fossil fuels for the transport and industry sectors, contributing to a CO2 emission that is expected to rise to 526,000 tons per year by 2030. Laos has been striving to deploy various technologies to increase the share of renewable energy within the country, as illustrated in the National Determined Contributions (2015) and the Renewable Energy Development Strategy in Lao PDR (2011).
Various ministries, including the Ministry of the Energy and Mines and the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment, are beginning to explore ways to undertake feasibility and demonstration studies on the power-to-gas technology to produce hydrogen and methane fuels. At the same time, as a country with no existing source of natural gas within its borders, Laos currently lacks gas-related laws, regulations, and infrastructure to allow commercial use of hydrogen and methane produced via power-to-gas process.
CTCN Support
- To produce a masterplan that will allow the relevant stakeholders to understand what steps are needed to be taken in order to operationalize power-to-gas technology on a commercial basis in the future
Expected Impact
The masterplan will serve as a map for further detailed and actionable roadmaps, strategies, and action plans to create regulations and other policy measures to support the development and management of production, storage, distribution, and usage of green gases produced via the power-to-gas technology, as well as other actions necessary to deploy the technology at a commercial basis, including conducting technical and commercial feasibility studies, piloting, and other relevant research activities as necessary.
