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(...) Following an August 2015 Notice (No. 1360) prohibiting the export of raw logs, a May 2016 Prime Ministerial Order (PM15) banned the export of logs and sawn wood to help control the country's high deforestation rates and boost the domestic wood production industry through commercial plantations. (...)

(...) However, the situation regarding forest governance seems to have slightly improved as, after years of little or no progress in terms of REDD+, the country prepared a proposal to receive performance-based payments, which was accepted into the Forest Carbon Partnership Facility (FCPF) Carbon Fund. [97] (...)
[97] In REDD+, the + includes the role of conservation, sustainable management of forests and enhancement of forest carbon stocks. It is an international effort under the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC).

Under the 8th NSEDP, Lao PDR's energy policy is focussed on hydropower development, thermal electric power, solar energy and industrial plant energy to turn the power sector into a sustainable income-generating sector to support various production activities and to address poverty issues. Its objective for a strategy and development plan for energy in the context of Vision 2030 includes: developing energy and ensuring its sustainability; helping build capacity; and enhancing electricity supply for the development of energy and mines in order to increase greener energy.

(...) The Lao Holding State Enterprise (LHSE) is a state corporation that holds and manages state shares in IPP projects. As at 2017, there were 63 hydropower plants, 1 thermal power plant, 4 photovoltaic plants and 2 biomass plants, with a total installed capacity of 7,076 MW; more than 88% of the capacity was owned by IPPs, while EDL and EDL/Gen represented 2.7% and 8.8%, respectively. (...)

(...) Article 5 of the Law on Electricity, inter alia, promotes: investment in (...) hydropower, in junction with the protection of forest-protected water sources (...) by using energy in an economical, effective and sustainable manner and through the use of modern technology, mitigating social and environmental impacts; (...) The 8th NSEDP focusses on hydropower development, thermal electric power, solar energy and industrial plant energy, in order to turn the power sector into a sustainable income-generating sector to support various productions and to solve poverty. (...) The 2015 Policy on Sustainable Hydropower Development in Lao PDR, which superseded the 2006 National Policy on Environment and Social Stability of the Hydropower Sector (No. 561/CPI), applies to all hydropower plants with more than 15 MW generation capacity, and provides policy guidance to agencies that manage hydropower investment projects for the inclusion of technical, engineering, economic/finance, environmental and social impacts in their analyses.

Despite Lao PDR's potential alternative renewable energy sources, their utilization is rather low, except for the widely-used large hydro projects, the country's primary source of electricity. Lao PDR has been developing other renewable energy sources, such as small hydropower (SHP), solar, wind, biomass, biogas, and municipal solid waste (...). As a result of fund-related financial support, as at 2015, solar power had been installed in rural areas for more than 18,657 households(...). Bioenergy power stations (using sugarcane and waste) and ethanol production factories were completed. Pilot projects on biodiesel production from palm oil and from vernicia seeds are underway; a feasibility study is being conducted to develop cassava-extracted benzene.

Lao PDR established policies to promote energy efficiency and renewable energy. Its June 2010 Renewable Energy Development Strategy (REDS) aims to increase the share of renewable energies to 30% of total energy consumption, and to reduce imports of fossil fuels through the development of biofuels, to replace 10% of transportation fuel needs by 2025. REDS priorities focus on small power development for self-sufficiency, grid connection, and biofuel production and marketing, by providing financial incentives and improving the laws and regulations on renewable energy. Under the 8th NESDP, the authorities, inter alia, plan to increase the expansion of renewable energy and other alternative energy sources (solar power, wind power, bioenergy, and biogas) and to focus on the development and utilization of clean and environmentally-friendly energy.

The Institute of Renewable Energy Promotion (IREP) of the MEM oversees the implementation of renewable energy, energy efficiency and rural electrification programmes. The Lao Institute of Renewable Energy (LIRE), a non-governmental and non-profit organization working with the MEM, promotes renewable energy and conservation through developing projects focussed on renewable energy sources, and creating a manual on renewable energy production and use.

Since 2005, a Rural Electricity Fund (REF), designed on a revolving capital principle with funding support from the International Development Association (IDA), the World Bank and the Norwegian Agency for Development Cooperation (NORAD), has been in place to enable larger uptake of renewable energies for off-grid electrification. In practice, until 2015, the REF was mainly limited to supporting solar home-based solutions. A REF hire-purchase scheme, administered by the IREP and involving an upfront installation fee and then monthly payments to repay the balance within between five and ten years, made solar home systems (SHSs) affordable for rural households.

Lao PDR's commitments under the GATS remained unchanged during the review period. Its Schedule of Specific Commitments covers 79 subsectors in certain business services, communication services, construction and related engineering services, distribution services, educational services, environmental services (...)