New Chinese built dam to boost power to Port Moresby

10:46 am on 29 April 2015

A new 550 kilowatt hydro-electricity dam is to be built in Papua New Guinea's Central Province to boost supply to Port Moresby.

The National newspaper says the dam will be built by a Chinese company along Brown River, about 50 kilometres from the capital.

The Prime Minister Peter O'Neill was at the dam site at Edevu at the weekend and told journalists the project will be driven by the private sector but the government, through PNG Power, will be the biggest customer.

PNG Hydro Development Ltd's spokesman Allan Guo says the environmentally-friendly project would generate an annual tax return of 30 million kina (approx US$11,000,000) for the government.

Sirinumu Dam, PNG

The Sirinumu Dam which supplies Port Moresby with water and electricity was opened in 1963 Photo: RNZ

Get the RNZ app

for ad-free news and current affairs