Sembcorp Utilities, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Sembcorp Industries, has been given the Notice of Award to develop and operate the largest gas-fired independent power plant in Myanmar, reports Channel News Asia on April 24.
In a press release, the Singaporean company said the project was awarded by the Myanmar Electric Power Enterprise (MEPE) - a division under the Ministry of Electric Power of Myanmar (MOEP).
This marks Sembcorp’s entry into Myanmar’s fast-growing power market, where electricity demand is estimated to increase at a compounded annual growth rate of 13 percent over the next 15 years. Sembcorp will have at least an 80 percent stake in the project, said the press release.
Myanmar’s current power shortfall is dire with only around 25-30 percent of the country connected to the electrical grid.
Sembcorp says the US$300 million (K300 billion), 225-megawatt power plant is located in the Myingyan district of the Mandalay division. When it is completed in 2017, the new facility will help to ease the country’s severe power deficit, which is estimated to be approximately 500 megawatts during peak periods.