Myanmar Oil and Gas Enterprise (MOGE) says a joint venture with foreign companies for importation, storage, distribution and sale of petroleum products will be implemented in March

A joint venture with foreign companies for importation, storage, distribution and sale of petroleum products will be implemented in March, according to the Ministry of Energy.

The tender for the joint venture with Myanmar Oil and Gas Enterprise (MOGE) was called from July to September and 14 foreign firms bought the application form, the Ministry said.

However, only four companies have submitted tenders: Indian Oil Corporation, Puma Energy Group Pte Ltd, PT Pertamina and Idemitsu International (Asia) Pte Ltd, it added.

“We will choose three companies from the list and we will set first, second and third priorities among these. We will discuss with the first company and if the meeting is not fruitful, we will meet the second company and so on,” U MyintZaw, a director from the Ministry of Energy, told Myanmar Business Today.

After discussions and negotiations are finished, only one company will be selected and signed with the Ministry of Energy.

“We will discuss what we want with the companies and will work with the company that meets our demand. We will start our joint venture in March next year,” U MyintZaw said.

In its tender announcement the Ministry said in cooperation with foreign companies it will distribute petroleum with “fair price and quality guarantee.”

Local private businesses have been permitted to operate petroleum distribution and sales services since June 2011. Prior to that state-run MOGE had monopoly over the sector.

There are 1,669 private and 12 state-owned gasoline stations in Myanmar, according to the Ministry of Energy figures.

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