Laos energy statistics show two distinct long-run patterns between 2000 and 2015: electricity exports expanded sharply after 2009, while charcoal production rose from tens of kilotons to hundreds of kilotons. The figures below cover Lao PDR and are reported in Lao PDR Energy Statistics 2018. They describe historical measurements; the source is a legacy research source and has not been independently verified here.
Contents
- Electricity exports
- Electricity imports
- Net electricity trade
- Charcoal production
- Year-by-year electricity trade
- Comparing the energy series
Electricity exports
Electricity exports were measured at 2,793 GWh in 2000. The reported figure increased slightly to 2,871 GWh in 2001, then stood at 2,798 GWh in 2002. Exports were lower at 2,285 GWh in 2003 and 2,425 GWh in 2004. The series then recorded 2,506 GWh in 2005 and 2,487 GWh in 2006.
The lower point in the middle of the first decade was 1,741 GWh in 2007. Exports rose to 2,315 GWh in 2008, before being reported at 1,921 GWh in 2009. These early-year figures place exports below 3,000 GWh in every year from 2000 through 2009.
The pattern changed in 2010, when electricity exports reached 6,646 GWh. The source reports 10,669 GWh in 2011, followed by 10,363 GWh in 2012. Exports reached 12,494 GWh in 2013, then were reported at 11,936 GWh in 2014 and 11,549 GWh in 2015.
The 2013 figure is the highest annual electricity-export measurement in this series. The subsequent 2014 and 2015 readings remained above 11,000 GWh, even though each was lower than the 2013 level. This makes the post-2010 period visibly different from the 2000–2009 export record.
Electricity imports
Electricity imports were 180 GWh in 2000 and 184 GWh in 2001. The reported amount rose to 201 GWh in 2002 and 229 GWh in 2003. Imports reached 278 GWh in 2004 and 330 GWh in 2005, then increased to 631 GWh in 2006.
The series shows 793 GWh of imports in 2007 and 845 GWh in 2008. Imports were 1,175 GWh in 2009 and 1,210 GWh in 2010. In 2011, the reported figure moved down to 904 GWh, before rising to 1,329 GWh in 2012 and 1,272 GWh in 2013.
The final two reported years were higher: electricity imports reached 1,559 GWh in 2014 and 2,050 GWh in 2015. The 2015 figure is the highest import measurement supplied for the period. Unlike exports, imports did not remain at one uninterrupted upward level: the series includes a decline between 2010 and 2011 and another between 2012 and 2013.
Net electricity trade
Net electricity trade was 2,613 GWh in 2000. The source reports 2,688 GWh in 2001 and 2,598 GWh in 2002. Net trade then fell to 2,055 GWh in 2003 and 2,147 GWh in 2004. It was 2,176 GWh in 2005 and 1,856 GWh in 2006.
The lowest net-trade figure in the series was 746 GWh in 2009. Before that, net electricity trade was 948 GWh in 2007 and 1,471 GWh in 2008. The 2009 reading followed the 1,175 GWh import figure and 1,921 GWh export figure reported for that year.
Net electricity trade increased to 5,437 GWh in 2010 and 9,764 GWh in 2011. It was 9,034 GWh in 2012, then reached 11,222 GWh in 2013. The reported values were 10,377 GWh in 2014 and 9,499 GWh in 2015.
The 2013 net-trade measurement is the highest in the supplied record. Net trade remained above 9,000 GWh in 2011, 2012, 2014, and 2015, while the 2000–2009 values were all below 3,000 GWh. This separation is useful when reading the electricity data: net trade follows the same broad break between the earlier and later periods as exports, while imports remain much smaller in every listed year.
Charcoal production
Charcoal production was reported in kilotons, or kt. Production stood at 53 kt in 2000, followed by 54 kt in 2001 and 55 kt in 2002. The series reached 56 kt in 2003, 58 kt in 2004, and 59 kt in 2005. It was 60 kt in 2006.
Production increased to 67 kt in 2007 and 79 kt in 2008. The source reports 94 kt in 2009 and 95 kt in 2010. These figures show a gradual rise through the first eleven observations, with the largest early-period reading occurring in 2010.
The charcoal series then moved into a higher range. Production was 325 kt in 2011 and 405 kt in 2012. It reached 532 kt in 2013, 650 kt in 2014, and 766 kt in 2015.
The 2015 measurement is the highest charcoal-production figure in the supplied record. It is also the final year reported for this series. Because electricity is measured in GWh and charcoal in kt, the two series should be read as separate measures rather than added together or ranked by their numerical size.
Year-by-year electricity trade
The table provides a compact reference for all three electricity-trade measures. Each value is in GWh and refers to Lao PDR for the stated year. The source for every row is Lao PDR Energy Statistics 2018.
| Year | Electricity exports | Electricity imports | Net electricity trade |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | 2,793 | 180 | 2,613 |
| 2001 | 2,871 | 184 | 2,688 |
| 2002 | 2,798 | 201 | 2,598 |
| 2003 | 2,285 | 229 | 2,055 |
| 2004 | 2,425 | 278 | 2,147 |
| 2005 | 2,506 | 330 | 2,176 |
| 2006 | 2,487 | 631 | 1,856 |
| 2007 | 1,741 | 793 | 948 |
| 2008 | 2,315 | 845 | 1,471 |
| 2009 | 1,921 | 1,175 | 746 |
| 2010 | 6,646 | 1,210 | 5,437 |
| 2011 | 10,669 | 904 | 9,764 |
| 2012 | 10,363 | 1,329 | 9,034 |
| 2013 | 12,494 | 1,272 | 11,222 |
| 2014 | 11,936 | 1,559 | 10,377 |
| 2015 | 11,549 | 2,050 | 9,499 |
The table also shows that the lowest export reading, 1,741 GWh in 2007, occurred before the lowest net-trade reading, 746 GWh in 2009. The highest import reading, 2,050 GWh in 2015, occurred in the final year even as exports and net trade were below their 2013 peaks.
Looking across the individual years adds context to the broad pattern. Exports were reported at 2,793 GWh in 2000 and 2,871 GWh in 2001, while net trade moved from 2,613 GWh to 2,688 GWh. In 2002, exports were 2,798 GWh and net trade was 2,598 GWh. By 2003, the corresponding measurements were 2,285 GWh and 2,055 GWh. The 2004 figures were 2,425 GWh of exports and 2,147 GWh of net trade.
The next three years continued to show moderate export and net-trade readings: 2,506 GWh and 2,176 GWh in 2005, 2,487 GWh and 1,856 GWh in 2006, and 1,741 GWh and 948 GWh in 2007. Exports then reached 2,315 GWh in 2008 while net trade reached 1,471 GWh. In 2009, exports were 1,921 GWh and net trade was 746 GWh. These paired observations make the transition into the 2010–2015 values clear without combining unlike units.
Comparing the energy series
Electricity exports and net electricity trade both moved from relatively low values in the first part of the record to substantially higher values after 2009. Exports were 2,793 GWh in 2000, 1,921 GWh in 2009, and 11,549 GWh in 2015. Net trade was 2,613 GWh in 2000, 746 GWh in 2009, and 9,499 GWh in 2015.
Imports followed a different scale. The reported amount was 180 GWh in 2000, 1,175 GWh in 2009, and 2,050 GWh in 2015. Imports therefore rose across the three reference years, but they remained below the corresponding export and net-trade values in each of those years.
Charcoal production also ended the period at a much higher reported level than it began. The series moved from 53 kt in 2000 to 95 kt in 2010 and 766 kt in 2015. The 2011 figure of 325 kt is notably higher than the 2010 figure of 95 kt, and the subsequent readings rose to 405 kt in 2012, 532 kt in 2013, and 650 kt in 2014 before reaching 766 kt in 2015.
These measurements describe different parts of Laos’s energy record: electricity flows across borders are expressed in gigawatt-hours, while charcoal output is expressed in kilotons. The historical source labels the publication as Lao PDR Energy Statistics 2018, and the measurements above retain the years and units reported there. They should not be treated as forecasts or as independently verified current estimates.