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No Autopsy, No Charges in Vang Vieng Methanol Deaths
Twenty months after six tourists died from suspected methanol poisoning at the Nana Backpackers Hostel in Vang Vieng, police have closed the case without any charges against the hostel's owner or staff. At a press conference kept closed to foreign media, Police Colonel Khamphong Vongdalasene said investigators lacked evidence that any individual had caused the deaths. The gap was basic and brutal. No autopsies were performed on the victims, who included Australian teenagers Bianca Jones and Holly Morton-Bowles and British lawyer Simone White. A local vodka maker was charged only with running an illegal business and selling products “harmful to health.” Only Australian, UK and Danish diplomats were admitted to the briefing, in addition to local media. Shaun Bowles, Morton-Bowles' father, said the findings were "an excuse." Karsten Sorensen, whose daughter Freja also died, was harsher, saying authorities were trying to cover something up and calling the process corrupt and incompetent.
Read more: ABC
Luang Prabang Dam Almost 3/4 Complete
The Luang Prabang dam is almost three-quarters complete, keeping it on track for a 2030 startup and 1,460 megawatts of run-of-river capacity by way of its seven turbines. Thailand's CK Power owns half the project, Gulf Hydropower holds a fifth, and CH. Karnchang, TTW, and PT Sole split the rest. Most of the electricity will be bound for Thailand. The $5 billion project is about 25 kilometers from Luang Prabang's UNESCO old town, which has been cause for years of heritage warnings. At a recent site visit, officials said the fears had been addressed, without saying how. If the dam is finished as planned, it will become the Mekong mainstream's third dam after Xayabouly and Don Sahong. Six more are planned.
Read more: Laotian Times
Electricity Exports to Vietnam Up 120 Percent
Electricity exports to Vietnam more than doubled in a 120 percent year-on-year increase to a record 2.92 billion kilowatt-hours in Q1 2026. By the end of 2025, Hanoi had approved imports from 47 power projects with a combined capacity of more than 8,260 megawatts. Of that, 2,379 MW is already feeding into the grid. Vientiane also signed a concession for an 80 MW Xekaman 4 hydropower project in Sekong, with all of its output planned to be sent to Vietnam. Bilateral trade was $1.305 billion in the first half, led by gold, potassium chloride, and electrical machinery. Hanoi has also broken ground on the 60-kilometer Vinh-Thanh Thuy Expressway to the border, the first stretch of a planned Vientiane-Hanoi corridor.
Read more: Laotian Times
Hotel Raid Nets 51 in Furniture Scam
Police nabbed 51 foreigners, including Japanese, Chinese, and Taiwanese citizens, at a Xieng Khouang hotel, and have accused them of running an online furniture and home-appliance scam. Officers took more than 100 phones, computers, and other call-center fraud kit from the rooms. The raid came after a tip from a local resident.
Read more: News on Japan
Squishy Toys Pulled From Shelves Over Benzene
Laos ordered a stop on imports and sales of non-certified Squishy toys after inspections found excessive benzene levels in the TikTok-popular stress toys. Authorities say at least three children got rashes, blister-like burns, eye irritation, fever and vomiting after playing with them.
Read more: Laotian Times
Storms Swamp Khammouane's Rice Paddies
Storms Maysak and Bavi dumped ten days of rain on Khammouane's Khounkham district, flooding 3,234 hectares of paddy in 19 villages and leaving 1,365 families evaluating the damage. The district's Disaster Management Committee put losses at LAK 39.7 billion (~$1.75M). Cassava and rubber plantations, irrigation canals, and livestock were also hit. The 2026 flood response plan is tightening oversight of almost a hundred hydropower operators and putting local coordinators on-site at dams.
Read more: Laotian Times
Vientiane Tells Online Sellers to Register
Vientiane's Department of Industry and Commerce says the rule isn’t new, but it’s time to comply. Online sellers have needed a business registration and e-commerce license since 2023, with fines up to LAK 10 million (~$440). Nationwide E-Trust registration became mandatory on February 1, 2026, letting even home-based sellers in remote provinces file online. Rules also require Lao-language labels, pricing in the kip, and a ban on unapproved pyramid or fundraising schemes. The notice draws no distinction between domestic and foreign operators.
Read more: Laotian Times
Gas Pumps Get an Electric Makeover
The State Fuel Company and Electricite du Laos are looking into whether state-owned petrol stations can become EV fast-charging hubs, with chargers built for both the international CCS Type 2 standard and China's GB/T plug. The study also investigates the viability of turning old fuel stops into energy hubs with cafés, restaurants and convenience stores. Petrol and diesel vehicle imports are mostly banned through the end of 2026, and even though Laos runs largely on hydropower, it still pays for every drop of fuel in foreign currency. No cost estimate or rollout date was provided.
Read more: The Star (agreements), Fuel Cells Works (import ban)
Government-Majority Venture to Certify Its Own Products
The Ministry of Industry and Trade has given inspection and certification duties to a new outfit called State-owned Enterprises for Checking Standards and Certifying Product Quality Limited. Fifty one percent of the company is held by the government and 49 percent by Lao Standard Control Co. The company will test goods against national standards and issue certificates of legality before they hit shelves or cross borders. Officials say that consumer complaints filed through the National Assembly hotline as the trigger. No fee schedule or testing timeline was published.
Read more: Laotian Times
Party Turns Heritage Into a Tourism Line Item
The Party Central Committee wants more money out of culture. It approved the Lao Cultural Values Promotion Association, tasking it with turning heritage into a creative economy for artists, performers, and cultural entrepreneurs. Association president Savanhkhone Razmountry says cultural attractions already pull in four to five million visitors a year. The launch came in the wake of Vientiane's first khaen festival, tying the UNESCO-listed instrument to the government's 2026-2030 cultural and tourism strategy. That strategy also covers a pending UNESCO bid for Larb (the food) and a planned nomination for the Su Khuan blessing ceremony. The association's first job will be a national inventory of intangible cultural assets. In a separate development, ASEAN assessors are arriving in mid-August to inspect Nakai-Nam Theun’s 4,000 sq km for Heritage Park status, which officials hope to secure in 2028. UNESCO World Heritage inscription is queued for 2029, with an IUCN Green List bid running alongside. The park is more than four-fifths forest and home to the critically endangered saola. It was added to UNESCO’s tentative list in 2025 and completed its Green List gap analysis last October.
Read more: TravelMole (tourism target), VietnamPlus (khaen), The Star (heritage park)
Southern Laos Development Wish List
Prime Minister Sonexay Siphandone told officials in Champasak to stop shipping raw minerals and start processing, branding and selling them to export standards. He’s pushing a regional plan for the regions of Champasak, Salavan, Xekong and Attapeu that also calls for dry ports, cold storage, solar-powered irrigation and simplified customs procedures.
Read more: Asian News Network
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