With this loan, the Ministry of Electricity and Energy will make sure that Yangon’s power distribution system is improved and the frequency of power shortages reduced, said deputy minister U Tun Naing.

The project term is from 2020 to 2022 and power plants and transmission lines will be built and upgraded in North Dagon, North Okkalapa and Shwepaukkan in Yangon. Currently, many townships in Yangon are experiencing blackouts every day.

The interest rate for the loan is 1.5 percent per year and the loan term is 30 years. According to the agreement, 50pc of the contract’s value must be used for buying products and services from Thailand under an official tender system.

Myanmar will buy 1000 MW of electricity from China as a quick solution to an ongoing domestic shortage. It will sell the excess to other countries if needed, said U Soe Myint, deputy permanent secretary from the Ministry of Electricity and Energy (MOEE).

The additional supply of electricity will be purchased in batches from China Southern Power Grid over the next two years, said U Tin Maung Oo, permanent secretary of the MOEE, said at a press conference in Nay Pyi Taw in last week.

To prevent load reduction due to insufficient power generated in summer 2020, the MOEE is also seeking additional supply of electricity to be powered by liquefied natural gas (LNG), which will be delivered to Myanmar on floating power barges. U Tin Maung Oo said.

The power barges will include LNG tanks and regasification technology, enabling the gas to be distributed to the nearest power station. Prices and locations for other areas in which power is in short supply are still under negotiation. –

Source: https://www.mmtimes.com/news/myanmar-borrow-more-14-billion-baht-more-electricity.html