Another power deal for senator
The opposition has raised conflict-of-interest concerns over another agreement headed to the National Assembly today guaranteeing the government will buy electricity from a power plant to be constructed by a company owned by ruling party Senator Lao Meng Khin. However, it was unclear yesterday whether the guarantee to buy electricity from a 135 megawatt, US$181 million coal-fired plant to be built by Cambodia International Investment Development Group Co Ltd in Preah Sihanouk province is new or part of an existing deal. In June the National Assembly passed an agreement, after gagging opposition questions, guaranteeing the government would buy electricity from a 270 megawatt plant to be built by the firm at a price observers said appeared to be the highest for power seen in Cambodia – 8.43 cents per kilowatt hour. The duration and tax exemptions in that deal were identical to those in the guarantee headed to the National Assembly today…
