(Cambodia) Power Transmission Lines Co., Ltd., Power Transmission Project

For short periods these conditions are tolerable, but for a major outage such as that witnessed during the evaluation mission, these plans are inadequate. Losses to businesses due to outages included cancelled bookings at smaller hotels without backup generators, food spoilage due to no refrigeration, less customer traffic due to discomfort for patrons in the high temperatures, and inability to manage booking changes or take credit card payments due to inoperable electronic ticketing and payment systems. Some of the hotels permanently changed their source of television transmission to a satellite provider not dependent on the grid. For those without water, there is no plumbing, no tap water, and no laundry available. (Notes from interviews with a small sample of local businesses and residents are in Appendix 3.) Although the situation was extraordinary, the economy and expectations of the residents have changed dramatically in the 5 years of grid power availability, and emergency plans need to evolve accordingly. There may be an opportunity for an ADB public sector project to support development of emergency plans and power plants dedicated to emergency power supply.