9 Years of Resistance Against the Pak Beng Hydropower Project: A Timeline of Community and Civil Society Action

The Pak Beng dam — a massive hydropower project on the upper Mekong River with an installed capacity of 912 megawatts and exporting almost all its electricity to Thailand — is more than just a set of contracts and numbers. Developed through a joint venture between China Datang Overseas Investment Co., Ltd. (CDTO) and Gulf Energy Development PCL (GULF), with a 51:49 shareholding structure , the project exemplifies the growing trend of cross-border collaboration between Chinese and Thai energy interests. Yet behind this transnational investment lies a range of hidden costs: threats to food security, loss of access to land and water, disrupted fisheries, and deterioration of traditional ways of life . These impacts strike at the heart of community survival, stripping people of their livelihoods, autonomy, and dignified living conditions. This is a battleground between development and human rights, between profit and the survival of the environment.

For nine years, the Pak Beng dam has been met by protest and pressure: community hearings, critiques of the project’s environmental and social impact reports, local demonstrations, and open letters. A wide network of civil society organizations, including Fair Finance Thailand (FFT), along with community-based groups have played a critical role in holding power to account. Their collective efforts underscore a fundamental truth: no megaproject exists in isolation. Its ripple effects shape the lives, livelihoods, and ecological futures of people across the Mekong basin.

Through this timeline of the "Pak Beng dam Hydropower Project," FFT, together with civil society and community networks, unveils the unfolding saga of almost a decade-long struggle: urgent warnings ignored, mounting pressures, and a relentless fight for justice that has pitted communities and civil society against powerful economic and political forces.

● 20 Dec 2016: Pak Beng dam entered the Prior Consultation and Agreement (PNPCA) process under the Mekong Agreement

● Feb–May 2017: A series of PNPCA public hearings were held in Chiang Saen (Feb 9), Nong Khai (Mar 17), Ubon Ratchathani (Mar 23), and Wiang Kaen (May 18), generating concern over incomplete information and transboundary impacts

● Apr–Jun 2017: Multiple civil society responses emerged:
o Rak Chiang Khong group submitted letters requesting transparency on the cross-border impacts of the Pak Beng dam
o Save the Mekong Coalition issued a public statement calling for the delay of the Pak Beng PNPCA
o The Department of Fisheries (DOF) criticized flawed fish impact studies
o The Mekong River Commission (MRC) technical review report of Pak Beng dam highlighted major gaps in project’s impact assessments

● 8 Jun 2017: Rak Chiang Khong group and the Thai Mekong People's Network from Eight Provinces filed a lawsuit with the Administrative Court to revoke the public hearing process for the Pak Beng dam

● 15 Jan & 4 Aug 2019: CDTO held meetings with Thai CSOs, local authorities and academics to discuss transboundary impact concerns, but collaboration with Lao counterparts stalls

● Jan 2020: GULF and CDTO execute shareholding agreement for Pak Beng dam

● 19 Feb 2020: The National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) identifies 27 flood-risk villages and urged the government to protect community rights in accordance with the UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights (UNGPs)

● 24 Feb 2021: The Supreme Administrative Court dismissed the lawsuit seeking to revoke the hearing process for the Pak Beng dam

● 30 Jan 2022: Rak Chiang Khong group filed a complaint with the Office of the Ombudsman, calling for scrutiny of community and border projects

● 29 Apr 2022: The National Energy Policy Council (NEPC) and Electricity Generating Authority of Thailand (EGAT) approved a draft Power Purchase Agreement (PPA) for the Pak Beng dam

● 8 Mar 2023: The Ministry of Energy (MoE) confirmed that a new transboundary impact study on the Pak Beng dam is being conducted by TEAM Group

● 13 Sep 2023: EGAT signed a 29-year PPA with Pak Beng Power Company, with the Commercial Operation Date set for January 1, 2033

● 6 Nov 2023: NHRC issued a letter to the Prime Minister urging a review of the Pak Beng dam's PPA to protect the rights of communities along the Mekong River

● 2024-2025: Fair Finance Thailand Open Letters on the Pak Beng Hydropower Project
o 19 Jan 2024: Urged banks to demand necessary documentation from the project developer for the assessment of ESG risks
o 6 Sep 2024: Submitted questions and concerns to banks regarding the Pak Beng dam project's risks under the Equator Principles
o 4 Apr 2025: Submitted additional ESG risk data on the Pak Beng dam project to banks
o 18 Aug 2025: Submitted concerns regarding the Pak Beng dam project after comparing the Transboundary Impact Assessment documents with the Equator Principles

Responses from the Pak Beng Community and Civil Society Organizations
From the earliest hearing sessions to ongoing academic dialogues, affected communities have consistently flagged risks that go beyond immediate displacement. Their concerns include threats to food security, loss of access to land and resources, damage to riverbank gardens, and disruptions to fisheries that form the backbone of local livelihoods. Reports reviewed by International Rivers also underscore that the Transboundary Environmental Impact Assessment (TbEIA) and Cumulative Impact Assessment (CIA) failed to provide adequate modeling of fish migration, sediment flow, and flood safety for downstream villages.

The deficiencies were not minor: fisheries studies were incomplete, hydrological models omitted critical seasonal data, and cumulative impacts from multiple Mekong mainstream dams were largely ignored. Such gaps, as communities and experts pointed out, translate directly into heightened flood risk, reduced agricultural productivity, and erosion of traditional practices tied to the river. Even after the Supreme Administrative Court dismissed the lawsuit challenging the hearing process in 2021, resistance has continued through coordinated networks, formal petitions to oversight bodies, and human rights advocacy grounded in UNGPs principles.

FFT’s Open Letters to Banks: Pushing ESG Risk into the Spotlight
Fair Finance Thailand has played a critical watchdog role, issuing four open letters between January 2024 and August 2025 regarding the Pak Beng and Pak Lay hydropower projects. These letters urged financial institutions to withhold financing until core safeguards were met, pointing to serious shortcomings in transparency, incomplete transboundary impact assessments, and non-compliance with the Equator Principles. The letters further underscored the need for independent state oversight and stronger due diligence, warning that without these measures, Thai banks risk financing projects that carry high cross-border environmental, social, and human rights risks.

The struggle against the Pak Beng dam is a reminder that genuine development justice must be grounded in transparency, accountability, and the real participation of those affected. Over nine years, communities, civil society, and financial watchdogs have worked to prevent irreversible ecological harm and support Mekong basin residents in ensuring their rights are respected. Their resistance reflects not just one-time opposition to a dam project, but collective demands for justice and ethical governance in development.

Sources

Pak Beng Power Co., Ltd. (n.d.). Hydropower Project: Pak Beng Power – Overview. https://www.pakbengpower.com/en/index.php
Internatioanl Rivers. (2017, May). Independent Expert Review of the Pak Beng Dam Environmental Impact Assessment and Supporting Project Documents. https://www.riverresourcehub.org/wp-content/uploads/files/attached-files/independentexpertreview_pakbengdameia_may2017.pdf
เครือข่ายประชาชนไทย 8 จังหวัดลุ่มน้ำโขง, กลุ่มรักษ์เชียงของ, และกลุ่มเสรีภาพแม่น้ำโขง. (2566, เมษายน). สรุปข้อมูลเบื้องต้น โครงการเขื่อนปากแบง และการวิเคราะห์ผลกระทบข้ามพรมแดนต่อประเทศไทย [รายงาน]. https://www.mymekong.org/document/pakbengdamebook2023/
The Mekong Butterfly. (2024, November 10). Communities to banks: Deny Pak Beng Dam funding. https://themekongbutterfly.wordpress.com/2024/11/10/communities-to-banks-deny-pak-beng-dam-funding/
Save the Mekong Coalition. (n.d.). Prior Consultation for Pak Beng Dam Must be Delayed. https://savethemekong.net/tag/pak-beng/
Bangkok Tribune. (2023, September 18). Power purchase agreement for Pak Beng dam signed: EGAT. Bangkok Tribune. https://bkktribune.com/power-purchase-agreement-for-pak-beng-dam-signed-egat/
สำนักข่าวชายขอบ. (2566, พฤศจิกายน). กสม.ส่งหนังสือถึงนายกรัฐมนตรีแนะทบทวนสัญญาซื้อขายไฟฟ้าเขื่อนปากแบง เผยกรมสนธิสัญญาระบุทำให้ร่องน้ำลึกเปลี่ยนส่งผลกระทบต่อการเจรจาเส้นแบ่งแดน ชี้ขาดการมีส่วนร่วมของประชาชน. สำนักข่าวชายขอบ. https://transbordernews.in.th/home/?p=36281
Fair Finance Thailand. (2024, September 24). จดหมายเปิดผนึกถึงธนาคารพาณิชย์ เรื่อง ข้อเสนอแนะต่อธนาคารในการพิจารณาให้การสนับสนุนทางการเงินแก่โครงการผลิตไฟฟ้าพลังน้ำ ปากแบง (Pak Beng) และ ปากลาย (Pak Lay) ใน สาธารณรัฐประชาธิปไดประชาชนลาว. https://fairfinancethailand.org/article/2024/the-consideration-of-financial-support-for-the-pak-beng-and-pak-lay-hydropower-projects/
Fair Finance Thailand. (2025, April 11). จดหมายเปิดผนึกถึงธนาคารพาณิชย์ เรื่อง ความเสี่ยง ESG ของโครงการผลิตไฟฟ้าพลังน้ำ ปากแบง (Pak Beng) กับการพิจารณาสินเชื่อของธนาคาร. https://fairfinancethailand.org/article/2025/open-letter-ffts-pak-beng/
Fair Finance Thailand. (2025, August 18). จดหมายเปิดผนึกถึงธนาคารไทย เรื่อง ข้อกังวลต่อโครงการผลิตไฟฟ้าพลังน้ำ ปากแบง (Pak Beng) ในการปฏิบัติตามหลักการ Equator Principles. https://fairfinancethailand.org/article/2025/202508_open-letter-fft-concern-pak-beng/