Laos can solar energy be stored

Looking to offer Laos a true alternative to hydroelectric power, I have put forward the idea of a 11,400 MW floating solar-with-storage system (FSS) on the 370 km2 Nam Ngum reservoir – the biggest open and flat surface in Laos. The FSS could generate 15,000 GWh/year of energy, which is about equal to that of the above three hydroelectric . Looking to offer Laos a true alternative to hydroelectric power, I have put forward the idea of a 11,400 MW floating solar-with-storage system (FSS) on the 370 km2 Nam Ngum reservoir – the biggest open and flat surface in Laos. The FSS could generate 15,000 GWh/year of energy, which is about equal to that of the above three hydroelectric . ASEAN member Laos has plans to increase renewable energy in its power mix, notably solar power buildout. However, it continues to rely on hydropower and coal-fired power plants to generate electricity, complicating both its way forward and decarbonisation plans. It is predicted that Laos can significantly enhance its energy sustainability by 2030 by implementing a diverse energy mix that includes at least 30 % renewable sources. A mixed-methods approach was used to evaluate the viability of different renewable technologies, including hydropower, solar electricity, and biomass, through the analysis of . In 2019, Lao PDR’s total primary energy supply (TPES) was 5.9 million tonnes of oil equivalent (Mtoe), and the energy mix consisted of hydropower, oil, coal, solar and biomass. As there were many power plants in Lao PDR generating electricity for export in 2019, the export figure reached 25,048 gigawatt-hours (GWh) or equivalent to 2.15 Mtoe. This strategy aims to develop new renewable energy resources which are not yet widely explored in Lao PDR to replace resources that will be exhausted in the future, also known as “non-renewable energy” (fossil fuels, coal, natural gas etc).