H. E. U Myint Zaw, Deputy Minister of Energy, discusses Myanmar’s plans for its energy sector.
European Times: What are your ministry’s responsibilities?
H. E. U Myint Zaw: The Ministry of Energy oversees Myanmar’s oil and gas sector, and is divided into the Minister’s Office, which administers the Ministry and oversees the sector’s development, and the Energy Planning Department, which is in charge of policies. The ministry also oversees state-owned Myanmar Oil and Gas Enterprise (MOGE), which is responsible for the upstream petroleum sector, both onshore and offshore. Myanmar Petrochemical Enterprise (MPE), which is responsible for downstream petroleum and petrochemicals processing; and Myanmar Petroleum Products Enterprise (MPPE), which handles retail sales and distribution of petroleum products.
European Times: What are the opportunities for EU investors in Myanmar’s energy sector?
H. E. U Myint Zaw: The new Foreign Investment Law opens the door to European FDI. The Government of Myanmar is looking to provide the perfect environment for FDI to directly benefit the people of Myanmar. In the energy sector, there is a lot of potential for exploration and production in deep – water blocks. These projects are largely untapped, with a large upside for discovery of even more resources.
European Times: What are some recent developments in the energy sector?
H. E. U Myint Zaw: The ministry has decided to prioritise domestic demand concerning new discoveries of crude oil and natural gas both onshore and offshore. Because of financial and technical constraints, the ministry has launched onshore and offshore bidding rounds and we are working hard to ensure transparency with our international partners. We welcome investment in developing Myanmar’s vast natural – gas resources and in LNG pipelines, including those in the Yangon area. We also seek European funding for renewable – energy projects, particularly in rural areas. For a long time, Myanmar did not have the infrastructure to take advantage of our energy resources. Today, with the government’s reform initiatives, there is truly a change occurring. Concerning the South East Asia Pipeline which transports oil and natural gas from Kyaukphyu towards the Chinese border, people have accused the ministry of seizing land illegally to complete the project, but this is not true. We worked very hard with communities along the pipeline and sometimes changed the route to comply with their request. Myanmar joined the Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative in 2013, demonstrating that we are willing to work with international companies to develop the energy sector. We are eager to learn how to implement a more transparent and healthy energy sector in Myanmar.
