China Eximbank provides RMB 309 million government concessional loan for Phase 2 of Stung Atay Pursat Dam Construction Project (Linked to Record ID#35582, #62239)

Project narrative

The Stung Atay Pursat Dam Construction Project is a $255 million project that was implemented in two phases. On September 29, 2010, China Eximbank and the Government of Cambodia signed a $63,134,700 preferential buyer's credit (PBC) agreement for Phase 1 of the Stung Atay Pursat Dam Construction Project (captured in linked Record ID#35582). The PBC, which was approved by the Government of Cambodia on December 13, 2010, carried the following borrowing terms: 20-year maturity, 7-year grace period, 2% interest rate. On May 16, 2017, China Eximbank and the Government of Cambodia signed an RMB 309 million government concessional loan (GCL) agreement for Phase 2 of the Stung Atay Pursat Dam Construction Project (captured in linked Record ID#48921). The GCL carried the following terms: 20-year maturity, 7-year grace period, and 1.25% interest rate. Phase 1 involved the installation of two sets of ten-megawatt hydro turbines and generator units (4 x 5 MW). Phase 2 involved the construction of the lower dam's powerhouse and the installation of four sets of 25MW hydro turbines and generator units (4 x 25 MW). Phase 2 also involved the construction of a 115 kV transmission line from the hydroelectric plant to the Ou Saom Substation and the construction of a 230 kV transmission line from the Ou Saom substation to the Pursat Grid substation. The project is located in a remote and jungle area in Stung Atay, which is an upstream tributary of Stung Ruxeg Chrum in Pursat Province. It is situated within Osang Township, Levin County, and Bodhisattva Province. The geographical coordinates of the dam site are east longitude of 103°08’43” and north latitude of 11°58’20”. The project was implemented by C.H.D. (Cambodia) Hydropower Development Co. Ltd. (also known as Cambodia Hydropower Development Co. Ltd.) — a subsidiary of the China Datang Group Overseas Investment Corporation and the SPV created for this project— and the Government of Cambodia. They, in turn, hired China Yunnan Corporation for International Techno-Economic Cooperation (CYC), Yunnan Southeast-Asia Economy and Technology Investment Industrial Co., LTD., and Guangdong Foreign Construction Company (GDFC) as the EPC contractors to support the implementation of Phase 1 and Phase 2. In May 2009, a project feasibility study was completed. Then, in September 2009, an Initial Environmental and Social Impact Assessment (IESIA) was completed. The IESIA was approved on November 12, 2009. A construction contract was issued in March 2010, and an order to commence construction was issued on January 26, 2010. Phase 1 commenced on April 3, 2010. It was completed in June 2013 and an opening ceremony was held on March 27, 2014. On August 13, 2014, Unit 1 of the hydropower station was successfully connected to the grid. Phase 2 commenced on May 16, 2017, and it was expected to be completed on May 16, 2020. As of May 2018, the Stung Atay power plant supplied Cambodia with nearly 1.2 billion kWh of power. This project supported the China Datang Corporation investment in C.H.D. (Cambodia) Hydropower Development Co. Ltd. under which the the Phnom Penh-Battambang Power Transmission Project to transmit 230 kV power from the 120 MW Stung Atay Hydropower Plant was planned to proceed in a Build-Operate-Transfer (BOT) project structure (see Record ID#62239).