Weekly Business News from Myanmar

Ministry of Electricity and Energy selected the winners of a tender for rental power projects in Mandalay region
YANGON – The Ministry of Electricity and Energy has selected the winners of a tender for rental power projects in Mandalay Region, an official says. Although the winners have not been formally announced, U Han Zaw, chief engineer at the Electric Power Generation Enterprise, told Frontier that the tender evaluation committee had already made a decision. He confirmed that VPower of Hong Kong has been selected to operate a plant at Myingyan, while National Infrastructure Holding Company will run a plant at nearby Kyaukse. Both will be fuelled by natural gas from the Shwe field. “We are in process of issuing the letters of award and signing the [power purchasing agreements],” Han Zaw said today. He added the plants should be ready by next summer. “We don’t have any power plant projects [coming online] in 2019 and 2020. So these projects must be in operation when next summer comes,” he said.
American coffee franchise Starbucks will soon open its first outlet at Sule Square, Yangon
American coffee franchise Starbucks will soon open its first outlet in Yangon, Myanmar, leaving Laos the only market in ASEAN it has yet to penetrate. On May 12, the Myanmar Investment Commission (MIC) endorsed Coffee Concepts Myanmar Ltd (CCM), a wholly foreign-owned food and beverage services provider. CCM is the operator of Starbucks in Myanmar, according to the MIC. CCM was registered with the Directorate of Investment and Company Administration in December 2017, a DICA document reveals. The first-ever Starbucks in Myanmar will be located in Sule Square mall, Kyauktada township, Yangon. The move arrives five years after the Seattle-headquartered coffee firm first set its sight on the Myanmar market as part of its plan to expand in Asia. During a visit to Thailand in 2013, Howard Schultz, Starbucks CEO, said that Myanmar was one of his firm’s targeted countries for expansion and that he expected to open the first Starbucks “within the next couple of years.”
Ministry of Home Affairs warned against cryptocurrencies trading in order to reduce the wave of scams and the use of dubious marketing strategies to lure investors
The Ministry of Home Affairs has warned against the trading of cryptocurrencies including Bitcoin, following a wave of scams and the use of dubious marketing strategies to lure naïve investors. The ministry issued a statement yesterday warning that cryptocurrencies were “unstable” and those interested should only study them, and not invest. It said coin promoters often targeted people in rural areas who had little knowledge of the complex products they were buying. In some cases they are employing multi-level marketing tactics, it said, whereby those who attract new investors earn a commission. “Cryptocurrency companies that were based outside Myanmar have started operating inside Myanmar,” the statement said. “They have mostly focused on attracting investors in rural areas who have no experience or understanding about cryptocurrencies. “These groups are attracting people to invest in cryptocurrency platforms using incentives. Digital currencies … are unstable and if anyone in Myanmar invests in them it may affect to country economy. So people should only study about cryptocurrencies.”
Yangon regional government plans to reduce petrol prices by allowing foreign investors and traders into the market
The Yangon Regional Government will lower petrol prices to reduce transportation costs for commuters, said Finance and Planning minister U Myint Thaung in the Yangon Parliament on Tuesday. The minister was responding to questions raised by MP U Hla Htay from Mingalar Taungnyunt township. “Transportation charges have been rising as all the petrol stations have fixed petrol prices at a high level. It is basically a monopoly,” U Hla Htay said. “The government should allow petrol to be imported and traded freely. It should also allow foreign investors and traders into the market. Currently, only a small group controls all the petrol stations and petrol prices,” he added. In Yangon Region, private petrol stations are selling a 0.27 million petrol gallon and 0.15 diesel gallon at a floating market price every day, according to U Han Htoon, Minister of Agriculture, Livestock, Forestry and Energy.
More infrastructures and safety standards are needed to develop the LPG industry in Myanmar by 2020
The government is now more than half way through its term and time is running out for it to make good on its promise to double Myanmar’s supply of electricity within the next two years. But the government is not without backup plans to help it achieve its goals, one of which is replacing the use of electricity for household cooking with liquefied petroleum gas (LPG). By the time its term is up in 2020, the government wants at least 1.5 million households across Myanmar to be cooking with LPG, which will free up more power to electrify the cities and industrial zones. But while investments for the import, storage and distribution of LPG in Myanmar has risen over the past year, industry insiders say the government may not meet its deadline to make LPG available at the targeted scale.
Myanmar Investors Development Association (MIDA) will make efforts to unlock Myanmar's investment potential and to promote its economic goals by engaging with local and foreign investors (U Khin Maung Aye, Chairman of MIDA)
HE MYANMAR Investors Development Association (MIDA), an alliance of large-scale local enterprises, will help the government achieve its economic goals by actively engaging with local and foreign investors, according to its chairman KhinMaung Aye. ”For our country to grow further, we need to create thousands of jobs for our citizens. Job creation entirely depends on investments we receive from local and foreign companies,” he said. “Foreign investors still have some difficulties investing in Myanmar while local businesses are facing challenges on how to make contact with foreign counterparts. It is still hard for the private sector to ensure proper contacts with foreign investors. That is how we came to realise the urgent need for a medium that can help local businesses and foreign investors get connected.” With this objective in mind, MIDA was established in early 2015 as a Yangon-based non-profit organisation which aims to create a linkage between the locals and foreigners willing to invest in Myanmar, chiefly in infrastructure and labour-intensive projects. Focusing on Myanmar’s emerging market and development potential, the organisation aims to provide the latest information and necessary assistance to investors. That would enable them to make important decisions and capitalise on investment opportunities arising out of the nation’s improving political climate.
Foreign investors will become less interested in new projects if the government is unable to solve the problems and difficulties in the current industrial zones, leading to the manipulation of land prices
Foreign investors will become less interested in the new projects if the government is unable to solve difficulties in the current industrial zones, leading to the manipulation of land prices, said Yan Shin, the regional MP of Mayagone Township Constituency-1. The MPs debated Yangon Region Government local and foreign investments for urban development, at the sixth regular session of Yangon Region Parliament. “It is sure that foreign investors will become less interested in the new projects and blame it on weak management if the government is unable to solve the problems systematically. As a result, the people who have extra money will buy land spaces and then manipulate land prices,” he added. According to the report, there are 29 industrial zones in Yangon. The government is responsible for dealing with the fact that local and foreign investors are less interested in the projects due to skyrocketing land prices and lack of systematic water supply, power supply, roads and sewage disposal system.
British expertise can support direct investment, including capital investment, technology through exports and technology transfer to make Myanmar an economic power house
Myanmar should tap into British expertise and experience to leapfrog its capital markets, schools and regulatory frameworks, while no financial sector in the world is more relevant to Myanmar’s development than London’s. Given the mounting political difficulties, only with sufficient foreign investment can the country move the economy towards revival and rebirth against all the odds. In this regard, the backing of UK businesses and transfer of skills and knowledge are essential and imperative. The UK’s Department for International Trade organised an outward mission to the UK in March, led by U Kyaw Myo, deputy transport and communications minister. The delegation included senior officials and 27 private sector representatives. The visit provided a platform for stakeholders and investors from the two countries to explore commercial opportunities. Subsequently, The Myanmar Times interviewed senior officials from the Directorate of Investment and Company Administration (DICA), Myanmar Trade Promotion Organisation, British Department for International Trade as well as experts on the current challenges and priorities for UK-Myanmar economic relations.
The annual Myanmar- EU Economic Forum will be held in Nay Pyi Taw on 6 June 2018 and aims to resurrect much needed investors' confidence
The annual Myanmar-EU Economic Forum will be held in Nay Pyi Taw on June 6 this year. The forum, hosted by European Chamber of Commerce in Myanmar (EuroCham), will be the second edition of the chamber’s signature advocacy event. The panels will be joined by business leaders, senior officials and international experts, facilitating discussions between stakeholders from Europe and Myanmar on economic issues. The areas will cover energy, construction, health, logistics, digital innovation, automotive, anti-illicit, legal, agrobusiness and garments. EuroCham will also issue its second White-Book, a bundle of position papers written by industries themselves. Filip Lauwerysen, EuroCham’s chief executive, told The Myanmar Times that this year covers a few more industry groups compared to last year, including CSR, tax-affairs and beyond. “This means the conference will touch on a much wider part of European investment and give all participants an extensive outline of the bottlenecks European investors and foreign investors in general, are facing and how we can tackle these challenges through improved cooperation with the Myanmar authorities; assisting the Myanmar authorities in achieving their economic development by applying best practice in other ASEAN countries.”
Over the past two years, the Chin State government made concerted efforts to achieve all round development in every socio-economic sector to support and encourage small and medium-sized enterprises
The Chin State Government has made concerted efforts to achieve all-round development in all socio-economic sectors. In order to spur sustainable development, plans are under way to support and encourage small and medium-sized enterprises, development of health and education sectors, and conservation of the natural environment. The authorities concerned of the Chin State Government have been able to serve the interest of the people in Chin State with sweeping reforms in various spheres during the two-year period in office. With a view to ensuring the improvement of socio-economic status of local residents, peace and stability in the region and rule of law and multi-sector development, the Chin State Government has made dramatic efforts to improve transport infrastructure, electricity and agriculture that are favourable to the region’s soil, to support its strategies to develop the area’s tourism sector and to promote small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in the region. The Chin State Government is committed to providing necessary assistance for regional development tasks, improving the telecommunications system, constructing the inter-township road, availability of electricity and upgrading of schools and hospitals presented by officials concerned