Thailand: International Stakeholder Workshops for Nam Theun 2 Launched

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Lao PDR: International Stakeholder Workshops for Nam Theun 2 Launched

BANGKOK July 30, 2004 ¾ The World Bank and the Asian Development Bank (ADB) announced today a series of international stakeholder workshops on the proposed Nam Theun 2 (NT2) hydropower project in Lao PDR.

These technical workshops – being held in Bangkok (August 31); Tokyo (September 3); Paris (September 7); Washington DC (September 10); and Vientiane (week of September 20) – will provide an opportunity for public comment and discussion on issues relating to the proposed project and to specifically comment on the series of safeguard documents which have been made public in draft form since May 2004. 

These documents are:

·          Environmental Assessment and Management Plan (EAMP): assessment of impacts associated with the project and development of plans to minimize, mitigate or compensate for these impacts.

·          Social Development Plan (SDP):  plan to manage social impacts including those related to resettlement, health and downstream impacts in the Xe Bang Fai and to manage special issues related to ethnic minorities.

·          Social and Environment Management Framework and 1st Operational Plan (SEMFOP): plan to manage the Nakai-Nam Theun National Protected Area and its Corridors. Its conservation is provided by the project as a compensation for a portion of the environmental impacts related to the project.

These three safeguard documents have been supplemented by the release of the Summary Environmental and Social Impact Assessment (SESIA) on July 30, 2004.   The SESIA and the safeguard documents it summarizes provide the technical background to these workshops, which are being organized at different international venues to facilitate discussion throughout the international stakeholder community of the proposed project’s potential impacts and benefits.  In addition to these documents, a draft of the economic analysis and revenue management arrangements will also be made available shortly and discussed at the workshops. 

The aim of these international workshops is to allow an open and well-informed discussion that can in turn inform decision making related to the project and capture specific comments and ideas related to the safeguard and other project documents which are currently in draft. Thus, these workshops are intended to hear about the concerns and views of interested stakeholders, with a view to providing feedback to the Government of Lao PDR and the Nam Theun 2 Power Company (NTPC) as they complete the project documentation covering environmental and social safeguards, economic analysis and revenue management arrangements of the proposed project in order to comply with the policies of the World Bank, the ADB, and other international financial institutions.  To ensure that the process is transparent, meaningful, and balanced, an independent moderator will lead the discussions at each of the venues and  prepare a summary of the feedback and recommendations arising from the workshop, which the organizers will share with the participants.

These international stakeholder workshops complement   the local consultations with project-affected communities, which are ongoing since May 2004. Local consultations have also been held previously in the project affected areas.   A summary of the latest round of consultations will be shared at the international workshops and be discussed in separate sessions at each workshop.    

The program of stakeholder workshops is as follows:

In addition, the Government of Lao will be hosting a full-day workshop in Vientiane during the week of September 20.

Further information on each of the workshops, including registration and topics for discussion, will be announced on www.worldbank.org/lao as they are finalized.  Inquiries may also be addressed to the contact persons listed above.

The SESIA, as well as the safeguards documents it summarizes, are available on www.namtheun2.com.

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