Myanmar junta pushes to restart Myitsone Dam project
Since June, Myanmar’s military government has increased its efforts to restart a massive, controversial hydropower project backed by China that has remained suspended for 15 years. The Myitsone Dam project, launched in 2009 and estimated to cost $3.6 billion then, was to be built along the Mali River, the N’mai River, and their confluence at […]
Myanmar's ruling military junta has intensified its attempts to resurrect a contentious hydropower project, the Myitsone Dam, which has been halted for 15 years. The $3.6 billion project, originally slated for construction along the Mali and N’mai Rivers in Kachin State, was to be situated in an earthquake-prone region of northern Myanmar. Owned jointly by China's Power Investment Corporation and Myanmar's Ministry of Electric Power, the dam was designed to span 1,310 meters in length and tower 139.6 meters high.
President Thein Sein halted the project in 2011 following widespread public disapproval over its potential environmental and social consequences. However, on June 30, junta spokesperson Khaing Khaing Soe announced during a press conference in Naypyidaw that the Myitsone project would be resumed to generate electricity for Myanmar.
Similarly, Kachin State Chief Minister Khet Htein Nan promoted the project during a public meeting on June 23, assuring that the dam would be constructed to withstand earthquakes and would not be prone to flooding. He added that if construction begins this year, the project could be completed within 8.5 years.
These statements come in the wake of junta leader-turned-President Min Aung Hlaing's visit to China at the beginning of June. The junta's efforts to restart the Myitsone Dam project have been met with mixed reactions, as concerns over the project's environmental and social impacts persist.
Written by urgent.news from Mongabay's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — it may contain errors, so check the original before relying on it.
