A local company says it will pursue plans to build a 50-megawatt coal-fired power plant in Tanintharyi Region once it has secured permission from Myanmar Investment Commission (MIC), despite continuing opposition from the community. “Residents were not informed when the company signed an MoU to build the plant, the company said it has completed an environmental and social impact assessment but it hasn’t shown us the results,” said the villagers.
Tag: Myanmar
Groups to hold ‘day of action’ to protest Salween dams
Last weekend thousands of people are expected to assemble on the banks of the Thanlwin or Salween River for a special event to remind the new government and foreign investors that ethnic people stand in solidarity to defend their river and their democratic and human rights against a series of dams that threaten their livelihoods, cultural sites, and homes.
Myanmar : Aung San Suu Kyi and China’s Options
Bhaskar Roy As Myanmar nears a historic political transition, the incoming National League for Democracy (NLD) will have a lot on their plate. They will face the enormous challenge of steering the country according to their plans. Having struggled for two and a half decades against a hardline military rule, they will have a clearer […]
KNU is outraged that media reports it had signed a MOU with the government to construct a hydropower dam as untrue.
The Karen National Union is outraged that media reports said it had signed a Memorandum of Understanding with the with the government to construct a hydro-power dam as untrue.
World Bank refuses to fund coal power
The World Bank Group (WBG) says it will not give any financial assistance to coal-fired power plant projects in spite of Myanmar’s increasing need for electricity. The WBG understood the country was in need of electricity but the WBG had no desire to give any financial aid to coal-fuel power stations.
NLD to scrutinise special economic zones
As speculation mounts over whether the new government will back Myanmar’s divisive special economic zones, a National League for Democracy spokesperson says in theory such projects are good for the economy and will continue to receive support. However, the party will need to scrutinise details before deciding whether or not individual projects have a future.
Myanmar: The great land rush
Hla Ohn May still weeps when she takes the road past the twisted white piping of the gas terminal near the western Myanmar town of Kyaukphyu. The 46-year-old farmer and mother of five once owned land on this green strip perched above the blue waters of the Bay of Bengal.
Then she and fellow villagers were bought out by a consortium, which included the state-owned China National Petroleum Corporation and the Korean conglomerate Daewoo. Kyaukphyu is now the starting point for a pair of immense Beijing-backed transnational energy pipelines, turning these wild shores into what some are calling “China’s west coast”.
The development is a big part of fast-opening Myanmar’s efforts to exploit its position at the crossroads of Asia. The lush fields where Ms Hla Ohn May and other farmers used to plant rice and beans are mere industrial landscaping now, manicured behind fences by company workers in orange jumpsuits. Ms Hla Ohn May was paid Kt2.78m ($2,250 at current exchange rates) but feels she was short-changed for giving up the only productive asset she ever had.
Myanmar Oil Gas Industry Opportunity, Analysis and Forecast Report 2016
Research and Markets has announced the addition of the “Myanmar Oil Gas Industry Analysis and Forecast Report (Q1 2016). The premier report provides analysis of key opportunities and associated challenges facing Myanmar oil and gas industry. Amidst several challenges confronting the oil and gas industry including fall in prices, changing market conditions, oil and gas sector risk and shift in competitive landscape, the report provides detailed insights into critical short and long term factors set to shape the outlook.
Myanmar expects entry of more US businesses
Representatives of US companies have become frequent guests at the Myanmar Federation of Chamber of Commerce and Industry these days as they explore business opportunities in the long-isolated country.
The visits have gathered pace since the National League for Democracy (NLD) won the election and the power transition from military rule appeared to be going smoothly, Win Aung, president of the federation, said last week.
“I strongly believe that Myanmar-US economic relations will strengthen in the next government’s term.
Salween Farmers Demand Government Accountability for Land Confiscation
Participants at a land rights seminar in Mon State urged the incoming National League for Democracy (NLD)-led government to address past practices of land confiscation with a special court dedicated to the issue.
Mon State’s Salween Eastern Farmers and Land Users Seminar was held in Moulmein for two days, from February 14-15, with over 90 representatives participating from five Mon State townships and one Tenasserim Division township, all selected for their locations east of the Salween River. Also present were Moulmein-based farmers’ organizations and civil society groups focused on land rights.