VIENTIANE: Former Electricite du Laos (EDL) officials and four contractor staff have been detained on charges of corruption and fraud involving state property in connection with the construction of the Hinboun Hydropower Project in Khounkham district, Khammuan province.
Those facing prosecution include a former deputy director of Electricite du Laos, while one of the four contractor staff is a foreign national, according to a report in Inspection Magazine.
The terms of the contract signed by the developer stated that construction of the dam would start in 2013 and finish in 2016, but the project has yet to be completed.
The project, managed by EDL, involves investment of nearly US$90 million, financed by the neighbouring country bank.
The project owner authorised the contractor to continue construction for another three years, but the dam still remains unfinished and is not generating electricity, as promised in the plan of work.
An inspection revealed that construction was only 76 per cent complete, but the project owner had paid the contractor US$88,750,341.33, amounting to 98.64 per cent of the total cost, causing the Lao government to suffer a huge loss.
Under the terms of the contract, the government is responsible for the debt burden in replacing the principal and interest that was borrowed from the bank.
All of the individuals involved are in police custody awaiting further legal proceedings. - Vientiane Times/ANN
