Electricity business licence: general electricity services, specific power generation, and transmission line concessions in Laos: statutory documents, competent authority and legal basis
Who can apply
Both Lao citizens and foreigners may apply; the documents differ.
Competent authority: The general service licence is applied for with the energy and mines sector (Art. 38) and issued under that sector rules (Art. 40); administration sits with the ministry (Art. 104), the provincial and capital departments (Art. 105) and district offices (Art. 43.1). Generation and transmission concessions are filed and extended at the one-stop investment service office (Arts. 54 and 56), while approval runs at five levels by installed capacity, from district head up to the National Assembly Standing Committee (Art. 43)
At a glance
Where to apply: The general service licence is applied for with the energy and mines sector (Art. 38) and issued under that sector rules (Art. 40); the administration is the ministry (Art. 104), the provincial and capital departments (Art. 105) and district offices (Art. 43.1). For generation and transmission concessions, applications and extensions go to the one-stop investment service office (Arts. 54 and 56), while approval sits at five levels by installed capacity (Art. 43).
Steps:
- First separate the three types (Art. 36): general services take one licence, the other two take a chain of agreements
- For generation or transmission, match your installed capacity to Art. 43 to see whether approval sits at district, provincial, government or National Assembly level, which drives the whole timeline
- For general services: meet the three conditions in Art. 39 and file under Art. 38 through the Investment Promotion Law route as well
How long: This law gives no number of working days for issuing a licence: Art. 40 leaves that to the energy and mines sector rules, so none is invented here. What the law does fix are document terms: the memorandum and development agreement each run up to twenty-four months with extension filed sixty days ahead (Art. 56), and concession operation runs up to twenty-five years for BOT generation, forty for small BOO hydropower and twenty-five for thermal, solar and wind, with extension filed five years ahead (Art. 64).
Cost: The Electricity Law sets no charges and the 2021 fees ordinance has no energy and mines section, the same finding as for mining. The 2012 schedule was expressly replaced, so do not budget from it. Art. 56 also requires a deposit after signing the memorandum or development agreement, set by the government rather than by this law. Rely on the counter.
Statutory document list
General electricity service business licence
- Application for the general electricity service business licence. Art. 40 says only that issuance follows the rules of the energy and mines sector and the law lists no attachments; Art. 38 additionally requires an application and attachments to the relevant sector under the Investment Promotion Law (required)
- Evidence of experience or skilled personnel and of a sound financial position matching the business (Art. 39.1 and 39.2) (required)
- Power of attorney, if someone files on your behalf (optional)
Changing the general service business licence
- Application to change the licence, submitted together with the reasons for the change (Art. 41) (required)
- Power of attorney, if someone files on your behalf (optional)
Specific power generation without tender, on the investor proposal
- Application and other related documents to the one-stop investment service office (Art. 54). That article says only application and other related documents without itemising them (required)
- After the memorandum is signed: the pre-feasibility study and the preliminary social and natural environmental impact assessment (Art. 54). This is work that follows the memorandum rather than an attachment to the application (optional)
- A foreign developer must first apply to the one-stop investment service office to open a representative office in Laos, and after completing the memorandum must establish a Lao legal entity before signing the project development agreement (Art. 54) (optional)
- Power of attorney, if someone files on your behalf (optional)
Specific power generation through tender
- Bid documents as required by the notice of the energy and mines sector. This route is not an application you file: the sector first does a pre-feasibility study on priority projects in the national plan (Art. 49) and then publishes a notice inviting legal entities to bid (Art. 50). Art. 50 closes by referring the principles, conditions, steps and methods of bidding to a separate regulation, so this law lists no bid documents (required)
- What follows winning the bid (Art. 51): a foreign developer must first establish a Lao legal entity before signing the head agreement, and after signing must pay the deposit set by the government and carry out the technical and financial feasibility study and the environmental, social and natural impact assessment under Arts. 59 and 60 (optional)
- Power of attorney, if someone files on your behalf (optional)
Transmission line concession business
- Application documents for a transmission line concession. The law makes it one of the three business types in Art. 36 but lists no separate documents for it; Art. 53 puts it on the same chain of agreements as specific generation, and Art. 64.1 says only that the operating term follows government rules confirmed by the National Assembly Standing Committee. Ask the energy sector and the one-stop office for the actual list (required)
- Power of attorney, if someone files on your behalf (optional)
Extending the memorandum of understanding or project development agreement, sixty days before expiry
- Extension application, filed with the one-stop investment service office sixty days before the document expires (Art. 56) (required)
- Evidence that at least two thirds of the work has been done, which is the basis for extension (Art. 56) (required)
- Power of attorney, if someone files on your behalf (optional)
Amending the concession agreement
- The parties agreement to amend the concession, under Art. 66, which requires that the total benefit to the State over the concession period is not reduced (required)
- Power of attorney, if someone files on your behalf (optional)
Statutory requirements
- Electricity business falls into three types (Art. 36): general electricity services, specific power generation and transmission line concessions. Their routes differ entirely: general services take a business licence (Arts. 38 to 41), while generation and transmission take a chain of agreements, the memorandum, the project development agreement and the concession agreement (Art. 53).
- What counts as general electricity services (Art. 37): planning, survey and data collection, design, construction, installation, operation, service and the maintenance of equipment and structures for electricity projects.
- The memorandum and the project development agreement each run no more than twenty-four months (Art. 56). Extension has three hard conditions: at least two thirds of the work done; the application filed sixty days before expiry with the one-stop office; and the original deposit passing to the State with an equal new deposit paid. If the developer cannot perform, the government may apply the measures in the agreement, and on termination there is no compensation and the deposit is forfeited.
- Two prohibitions are most direct (Art. 94): running an electricity business in protected or conservation forest, and surveying or developing without permission. Art. 93 sets prohibitions for state and state-enterprise personnel.
- Cost: the Electricity Law sets no charges, and the 2021 fees ordinance has no energy and mines section at all, the same finding as for mining. Schedules from the 2012 ordinance were expressly replaced, so do not budget from them. The rate posted at the counter prevails.
- Art. 43 sets which level approves according to installed capacity, and it is the most practical provision in this law: up to 100 kW with up to twenty households resettled goes to the district or municipal head on the proposal of the local energy office with provincial technical concurrence; over 100 kW to 5,000 kW goes to the provincial governor or capital mayor, or to the provincial assembly standing committee if more than twenty households move; over 5,000 kW to 100 MW goes to the government; over 100 MW to the National Assembly Standing Committee; and a reservoir over 10,000 hectares or resettlement of over 500 households goes to the Standing Committee as well.
- The non-tender route (Arts. 53 and 54): file with the one-stop investment service office for initial screening; the energy and mines sector assesses against the Art. 52 conditions; the result goes to the investment promotion and management committee; the authority set by Art. 43 approves signing the memorandum; the energy and planning ministries sign it for the government or local administration; the developer then does the pre-feasibility study and preliminary impact assessment; then the project development agreement and finally the concession agreement. Small projects need the ministry technical concurrence before the provincial committee.
- Foreign developers face two extra gates (Art. 54): after signing the memorandum they must first obtain a representative office in Laos through the one-stop office, and after completing the memorandum they must establish a Lao legal entity before signing the project development agreement.
- The concession term covers construction and operation (Art. 64). Operation: under BOT, generation projects run no more than twenty-five years and transmission concessions follow government rules confirmed by the Standing Committee; under BOO, small hydropower runs no more than forty years and thermal, solar and wind no more than twenty-five. Extension needs government agreement and the project company must apply five years before the concession ends, a much longer lead time than most licences.
Common issues
- Check Art. 43 first: over 100 MW, or a reservoir over 10,000 hectares or resettlement of over 500 households, goes to the National Assembly Standing Committee, a different order of magnitude from a district-level project
- Resettlement raises the approval level: 100 kW to 5,000 kW normally goes to the governor, but more than twenty households moves it to the provincial assembly standing committee (Art. 43.2)
Legal basis (Lao Official Gazette texts)
Excerpt: Article 36. Electricity Business The electricity undertaking as stipulated in Article 18 of this Law may be operated as an electricity business. …
Excerpt: Article 37. General Electric Power Service Business General electric power service business includes the planning, survey and data collection, design, construction, installation, operation, and maintenance of electric po …
Excerpt: Article 38. Operation of General Electric Power Service Business Any individual, legal entity, or organization intending to operate a general electric power service business shall submit an application and attachments to …
Excerpt: Article 39. Conditions for Operating a General Electric Power Service Business An operator of a general electric power service business must meet the following conditions: 1. …
Excerpt: Article 40. Consideration for Issuance of Business Operation License The consideration for the issuance of a license to operate a general electric power service business shall be carried out in accordance with the regula …
Frequently asked questions
Who can apply for a Electricity business licence: general electricity services, specific power generation, and transmission line concessions in Laos?
Both Lao citizens and foreigners may apply; the documents differ. Competent authority: The general service licence is applied for with the energy and mines sector (Art. 38) and issued under that sector rules (Art. 40); administration sits with the ministry (Art. 104), the provincial and capital departments (Art. 105) and district offices (Art. 43.1). Generation and transmission concessions are filed and extended at the one-stop investment service office (Arts. 54 and 56), while approval runs at five levels by installed capacity, from district head up to the National Assembly Standing Committee (Art. 43).
What documents are required for a Electricity business licence: general electricity services, specific power generation, and transmission line concessions in Laos?
9 statutory items: Application for the general electricity service business licence. Art. 40 says only that issuance follows the rules of the energy and mines sector and the law lists no attachments; Art. 38 additionally requires an application and attachments to the relevant sector under the Investment Promotion Law; Evidence of experience or skilled personnel and of a sound financial position matching the business (Art. 39.1 and 39.2); Application to change the licence, submitted together with the reasons for the change (Art. 41); Application and other related documents to the one-stop investment service office (Art. 54). That article says only application and other related documents without itemising them; Bid documents as required by the notice of the energy and mines sector. This route is not an application you file: the sector first does a pre-feasibility study on priority projects in the national plan (Art. 49) and then publishes a notice inviting legal entities to bid (Art. 50). Art. 50 closes by referring the principles, conditions, steps and methods of bidding to a separate regulation, so this law lists no bid documents; Application documents for a transmission line concession. The law makes it one of the three business types in Art. 36 but lists no separate documents for it; Art. 53 puts it on the same chain of agreements as specific generation, and Art. 64.1 says only that the operating term follows government rules confirmed by the National Assembly Standing Committee. Ask the energy sector and the one-stop office for the actual list; Extension application, filed with the one-stop investment service office sixty days before the document expires (Art. 56); Evidence that at least two thirds of the work has been done, which is the basis for extension (Art. 56); The parties agreement to amend the concession, under Art. 66, which requires that the total benefit to the State over the concession period is not reduced. Competent authority: The general service licence is applied for with the energy and mines sector (Art. 38) and issued under that sector rules (Art. 40); administration sits with the ministry (Art. 104), the provincial and capital departments (Art. 105) and district offices (Art. 43.1). Generation and transmission concessions are filed and extended at the one-stop investment service office (Arts. 54 and 56), while approval runs at five levels by installed capacity, from district head up to the National Assembly Standing Committee (Art. 43).
What is the legal basis for a Electricity business licence: general electricity services, specific power generation, and transmission line concessions in Laos?
Based on Law on Electricity (Amended) Article 36; Law on Electricity (Amended) Article 37; Law on Electricity (Amended) Article 38; Law on Electricity (Amended) Article 39; Law on Electricity (Amended) Article 40; Law on Electricity (Amended) Article 41; Law on Electricity (Amended) Article 42; Law on Electricity (Amended) Article 43; Law on Electricity (Amended) Article 52; Law on Electricity (Amended) Article 53; Law on Electricity (Amended) Article 54; Law on Electricity (Amended) Article 55; Law on Electricity (Amended) Article 56; Law on Electricity (Amended) Article 61; Law on Electricity (Amended) Article 64; Law on Electricity (Amended) Article 66; Law on Electricity (Amended) Article 67; Law on Electricity (Amended) Article 73; Law on Electricity (Amended) Article 90; Law on Electricity (Amended) Article 91; Law on Electricity (Amended) Article 93; Law on Electricity (Amended) Article 94; Law on Electricity (Amended) Article 104; Law on Electricity (Amended) Article 105. The full texts are available in the LaoPaniti law library, sourced from the Lao Official Gazette.
Are there time limits or hard requirements for a Electricity business licence: general electricity services, specific power generation, and transmission line concessions in Laos?
Electricity business falls into three types (Art. 36): general electricity services, specific power generation and transmission line concessions. Their routes differ entirely: general services take a business licence (Arts. 38 to 41), while generation and transmission take a chain of agreements, the memorandum, the project development agreement and the concession agreement (Art. 53). What counts as general electricity services (Art. 37): planning, survey and data collection, design, construction, installation, operation, service and the maintenance of equipment and structures for electricity projects. The memorandum and the project development agreement each run no more than twenty-four months (Art. 56). Extension has three hard conditions: at least two thirds of the work done; the application filed sixty days before expiry with the one-stop office; and the original deposit passing to the State with an equal new deposit paid. If the developer cannot perform, the government may apply the measures in the agreement, and on termination there is no compensation and the deposit is forfeited. Two prohibitions are most direct (Art. 94): running an electricity business in protected or conservation forest, and surveying or developing without permission. Art. 93 sets prohibitions for state and state-enterprise personnel. Cost: the Electricity Law sets no charges, and the 2021 fees ordinance has no energy and mines section at all, the same finding as for mining. Schedules from the 2012 ordinance were expressly replaced, so do not budget from them. The rate posted at the counter prevails. Art. 43 sets which level approves according to installed capacity, and it is the most practical provision in this law: up to 100 kW with up to twenty households resettled goes to the district or municipal head on the proposal of the local energy office with provincial technical concurrence; over 100 kW to 5,000 kW goes to the provincial governor or capital mayor, or to the provincial assembly standing committee if more than twenty households move; over 5,000 kW to 100 MW goes to the government; over 100 MW to the National Assembly Standing Committee; and a reservoir over 10,000 hectares or resettlement of over 500 households goes to the Standing Committee as well. The non-tender route (Arts. 53 and 54): file with the one-stop investment service office for initial screening; the energy and mines sector assesses against the Art. 52 conditions; the result goes to the investment promotion and management committee; the authority set by Art. 43 approves signing the memorandum; the energy and planning ministries sign it for the government or local administration; the developer then does the pre-feasibility study and preliminary impact assessment; then the project development agreement and finally the concession agreement. Small projects need the ministry technical concurrence before the provincial committee. Foreign developers face two extra gates (Art. 54): after signing the memorandum they must first obtain a representative office in Laos through the one-stop office, and after completing the memorandum they must establish a Lao legal entity before signing the project development agreement. The concession term covers construction and operation (Art. 64). Operation: under BOT, generation projects run no more than twenty-five years and transmission concessions follow government rules confirmed by the Standing Committee; under BOO, small hydropower runs no more than forty years and thermal, solar and wind no more than twenty-five. Extension needs government agreement and the project company must apply five years before the concession ends, a much longer lead time than most licences.
How much does a Electricity business licence: general electricity services, specific power generation, and transmission line concessions cost in Laos and how long does it take?
Cost: The Electricity Law sets no charges and the 2021 fees ordinance has no energy and mines section, the same finding as for mining. The 2012 schedule was expressly replaced, so do not budget from it. Art. 56 also requires a deposit after signing the memorandum or development agreement, set by the government rather than by this law. Rely on the counter.. How long: This law gives no number of working days for issuing a licence: Art. 40 leaves that to the energy and mines sector rules, so none is invented here. What the law does fix are document terms: the memorandum and development agreement each run up to twenty-four months with extension filed sixty days ahead (Art. 56), and concession operation runs up to twenty-five years for BOT generation, forty for small BOO hydropower and twenty-five for thermal, solar and wind, with extension filed five years ahead (Art. 64)..
Can LaoPaniti obtain the Electricity business licence: general electricity services, specific power generation, and transmission line concessions for me?
LaoPaniti organises the document list, offers online form filling, document upload and pre-check hand-off by staff. It is not a government filing, does not represent acceptance or approval by any authority, and promises neither results nor expedited handling. Formal processing follows the current requirements of the The general service licence is applied for with the energy and mines sector (Art. 38) and issued under that sector rules (Art. 40); administration sits with the ministry (Art. 104), the provincial and capital departments (Art. 105) and district offices (Art. 43.1). Generation and transmission concessions are filed and extended at the one-stop investment service office (Arts. 54 and 56), while approval runs at five levels by installed capacity, from district head up to the National Assembly Standing Committee (Art. 43).
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