The government of Myanmar on Friday August 7, gave written approval to the plans of building a liquefied natural gas power plant by three Japanese trading companies. Delegations from Mitsui & Co, Marubeni and Sumitomo Corp. attended the signing in the capital of Myanmar, Naypyidaw.The proposed 1,250 megawatt plant is proportionate to about a fifth of the current existing power generation capacity in the country.
The next phase, including detailed plant designs and negotiations about pricings for power with a local utility, will take 18-24 months. The construction is predicted to be completed after two and a half years, so the calculations are that the operation would be started around 2025. Also, the smoothness of the negotiations progress about pricing will be pivotal in whether the project valued in $1.5 billion-$2 billion will remain on schedule. Myanmar minister for electricity and energy, Win Khaing said that his ministry will cooperate to reach smooth and speedy completion of the plants, and would try to create a win-win situation for the upcoming power-purchase agreement.
The power-station plants will be located near the Thilawa Special Economic Zone, outskirts of Yangon, in the port area. The Japanese companies will form a joint venture with Eden Group, a local conglomerate to build and operate the power plant. At the same time, an offloading terminal for ship-borne LNG is going to be build.
