Construction of a hydropower dam inside one of Cambodia’s largest protected rainforests has been overshadowed by evidence of widespread logging far beyond the authorised site. Satellite images show sawmills, timber stacks and networks of roads cutting deep into Phnom Kravanh National Park, raising fears of systematic forest exploitation under the guise of clean energy development. Local residents report timber trucks leaving the Stung Russei Chrum Kandal dam area daily, while access to the site is tightly controlled by armed men in military uniforms. The developers are permitted to clear nearly 2,900 hectares for the reservoir, yet imagery reveals clearance extending several kilometres outside those boundaries. Experts say the pattern mirrors other dam projects in the Cardamoms, where licences have been abused to strip valuable old‑growth timber. Phnom Kravanh, spanning more than 926,000 hectares, is home to endangered species including elephants, Asiatic black bears and the critically threatened Sunda pangolin. It is also central to Cambodia’s controversial plan to reintroduce tigers. Conservationists warn that unchecked deforestation could devastate habitats and undermine Indigenous communities’ livelihoods. The company behind the dam, Khmer Electrical Power, is part of Anco Brothers, run by ruling party senator Kok An. He was sanctioned by the US Treasury earlier this year for alleged involvement in human trafficking and cyber‑scams, and is now facing an arrest warrant in Thailand. Trucks linked to his firm were recently caught transporting high‑grade timber despite permits allowing only saplings. Similar signs of logging have been detected at the Veal Thmor Kambot dam, also inside protected forest and a flagship conservation project area. Despite bans previously issued by the environment ministry, neither officials nor NGO partners have intervened decisively. Forestry expert Marcus Hardtke says the evidence fits a long‑standing pattern: “Every hydropower construction project in Cambodia in the last two decades has been massively abused for large‑scale, organised illegal logging operations by regime cronies, especially in the Cardamom Mountains.” With five dams already operating and five more under construction across Phnom Kravanh and Samkos Wildlife Sanctuary, campaigners fear the country’s push for energy security is being used to mask industrial‑scale forest crimes. -2026-09-03
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