Staff Reporter

Burma is open to using coal-fired power for a planned $8.6 billion industrial zone in Dawei as long as the electricity is used for domestic needs only, said Pailin Chuchottaworn, chief executive officer of PTT. PTT, Thailand’s biggest energy company, had planned to invest in a coal plant in Dawei that would export power to Thailand before Burma’s government scrapped the 4,000-megawatt project earlier this year, Pailin said. The plant was in original plans by Italian-Thai Development for a deep-sea port and business park in the Indian Ocean town. Burma’s government is “against the idea of exporting coal-based power to Thailand but they will allow coal-based power for internal use,” Pailin said in an interview on Wednesday. PTT, whose exploration arm is developing nine blocks in Burma, stands ready to develop its oil and gas industry, he said. At the same time, the Asian Development Bank is preparing to fund projects in Burma, after 25 years, joining other multilateral agencies and governments. “The development challenges of the country are huge: infrastructure, social sector. They need a lot of support and capacity building,” Rajat Nag, ADB managing director-general, said in an interview in his office in Manila on Wednesday. The ADB is seeking approval from its shareholders to formally begin infrastructure and development projects in Burma, and will work with other agencies including the United Nations and the World Bank, Nag said. Burma may be Asia’s “next economic frontier,” the International Monetary Fund has said, highlighting greater investor interest.