China to develop controversial Salween River hydro projects

China is ready to start building a series of controversial hydropower plants on the Nu River in Yunnan.

"We believe the Nu River can be developed and we hope that progress can be made.. during the 12th Five-Year Plan period," said Shi Lishan, the deputy director of new energy at the National Energy Administration.

The construction of dams and reservoirs on the UNESCO-protected Nu River -- also known as the Salween -- was first proposed in 2004, but disputes among

China's leadership and opposition from both Chinese and southeast Asian environmental groups has delayed the projects.

The Nu River, which begins in the Himalayas and snakes its way along the far western edge of Yunnan before entering Myanmar and Thailand, is one of the few major Chinese rivers yet to be dammed. The Chinese government says total potential capacity on the river could stand at 42 gigawatts.

Last November, the official China Securities Journal said that a pledge to dam the Nu River was likely to be included in China's latest five-year plan for the renewable energy sector.

China plans to build an additional 140 gigawatts of hydropower capacity in the next five years, the NEA revealed earlier this month.

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