Italian-Thai Development Plc. (ITD), the developer of the Dawei
deep-sea port project on the southern coast of Burma, needs to secure
around US$ 8.5 billion to move ahead on the infrastructure phase of the
massive mega-billion project.
Thailand's largest construction
company by market value, ITD will require the backing of Thailand, Burma
and a blend of international partners, Somchet Thinaphong, managing
director of Dawei Development Co (DDC), told The Bangkok Post on Monday.
The
local Burmese investor Max Myanmar has agreed to acquire 25 percent of
DDC, which ITD had set up to manage the Dawei project. The Thai
contractor has said it will maintain at least a 51% stake in DDC,
while other partners are welcome, he told the newspaper.
ITD has
been granted a 75-year concession for the energy project that will
cover 250 square kilometers. Located on the Andaman shoreline, Dawei is
about 350 kilometers west of Bangkok. The project will supply oil and
other goods to Southeast Asia, bypassing the Strait of Malacca and
cutting costs.
The Dawei Special Economic Zone includes an
integrated steel mill, power plants, a petrochemical complex and a
fertilizer plant. Separate entities will be set up to invest in each
project, Somchet said.
“China, Japan and South Korea are the key
strategic partners of our projects,” he said. “Finding a balance for
each of these groups is important. For example, if we have a lot of
Chinese partners, the U.S. might not be happy with that.”
Somchet told the Post that
the Thai and Burmese governments would provide support in four areas for the Dawei project.
– First is physical infrastructure such as roads in Thailand to link with Burma roads.
– Second is simplifying border procedures between the two countries under the Asean Economic Community (AEC) in 2015.
–Third is financial transactions such as money exchange between the two countries.
– Fourth is enhancing competitiveness of Thai and Burmese businesses in cross-border investment.
He
said Burmese authorities have yet to issue ITD a notice that Dawei's
planned coal-fired power plants had been halted after environmental
protests, as reported by various media on January 9 after remarks by
Burmese officials.
Somchet told Reuters news agency
that its power plant partner, Ratchaburi Electricity Generating Holding
Pcl, would decide on fuel type within three months, including the
possibility of using natural gas funneled to the site on a 50- kilometre
(31 mile) pipeline from fields in Burma.
