Laos agreed to delay construction of a $3.8 billion hydropower dam because of concerns among neighboring Mekong River countries that the project would disrupt fish catches and rice production downstream.

 The group "agreed that a decision on the prior consultation process for the proposed Xayaburi hydropower project be tabled for consideration at the ministerial level, as they could not come to a common conclusion on how to proceed with the project," it said in a statement Tuesday.