BurmaNet News: April 11, 1996 #381

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Date: Thu, 11 Apr 1996 16:05:13 -0700 (PDT)


The BurmaNet News: April 11, 1996 
Issue #381

Noted in Passing:

HEADLINES:
==========
THE NATION: CONSORTIUM WINS RIGHT TO YADANA FIELD OUTPUT
THE NATION: HYUNDAI AGREES TO JOIN PIPELINE BID
THE NATION: AMERICAN STUDENTS FIGHT US PRESENCE IN BURMA
THE NATION: BRITAIN LEADS OVERSEAS INVESTMENT IN BURMA
BKK POST: ?BURMESE TROOPS? ROB DUTCH PAIR, RAPE WIFE
BKK POST: GEN CHETHA KEEPS A LOW PROFILE
BKK POST: PRISONERS TO BE FREED
BKK POST: INDIA, BURMA RECOMMENDED AS NEW ARF MEMBERS
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THE NATION: CONSORTIUM WINS RIGHT TO YADANA FIELD OUTPUT

April 11, 1996

MIKA WATANABE
AP-Dow Jones

TOKYO -A consortium of Japan's Mitsui & Co, Total SA of 
France and Unocal Corp of the US has signed a Memorandum of 
Understanding (MoU) with the Burmese government to become 
the official joint venture partners for Burma?s US$700 
million (Bt17.5 billion) Yadana gas field project, a Mitsui 
official said yesterday.
The consortium has been granted exclusive negotiation rights 
with the Burmese government to carry out the project for the 
commercial and industrial use of natural gas produced from 
the offshore Yadana field, said the official.

The MoU follows a feasibility study conducted during August 
to November 1995 by Mitsui and the Burmese government.  The 
project, called ?Three In One', involves three schemes: 
building a 250-kilometre pipeline from the Yadana field; 
connecting the pipeline to a proposed 200,000-kilowatt power 
plant; and building a urea fertilizer production plant with 
a capacity of 570,000 metric tonnes a year, said the 
official.

Since Burma's natural gas production from onshore fields is 
falling owing to the resources, the effective use of is said 
to be one of the country's most important issues and has 
been given top priority by the government, the Mitsui 
official noted.

Pending international cooperative loans from Japan, the US 
and Europe to help finance the costs of the Three-In-One 
project, the Mitsui-Total-Unocal consortium aims to start 
the industrialized use of natural gas in July 1998, which 
will coincide with the expected commencement by another 
consortium of commercial gas production at the Yadana field, 
he added.

Actual development of the field is being handled by another 
consortium, comprised of Total, Unocal and PTT Exploration 
and Production Plc of Thailand, which in February 1995 
signed a production-sharing agreement with the country's 
national oil company, Myanmar Oil and Gas Enterprise (MOGE).

The Mitsui-Total-Unocal joint venture is different in that 
it is involved with the actual use that the natural gas is 
put to.

Production volumes are expected to be 650 million cubic feet 
per day.  Some 525 million cubic feet per day will be 
exported to Thailand through another pipeline that has yet 
to be studied, and the remaining 125 million cubic feet per 
day will be consumed domestically, the Mitsui official said. 
(TN)

****************

THE NATION: HYUNDAI AGREES TO JOIN PIPELINE BID
April, 1996

The Nation

INDUSTRY Minister Chaiwat Sinsuwong yesterday persuaded the 
top executive of South Korea-based Hyundai Engineering & 
Construction Co Ltd to join the bid in July this year to lay 
a gas pipeline from Burma to Ratchaburi.

In addition, the Industry Ministry urged the Korean company 
to speed up implementation of the National Fertilizer Corp 
(NFC) project, which has already been delayed for three 
months.

Chaiwat said he asked Hyundai's Engineering & Construction's 
Chairman Chung Mong Hun to bid for the Petroleum Authority 
of Thailand PTT gas pipeline project running from the Yadana 
and Yeidagon fields in Burma to Thailand.

PTT plans to call a bid for the project this July. Hyundai, 
the largest construction firm in South Korea, is currently 
participating in a number of the Industry Ministry's 
projects such as NFC.

Chaiwat also told reporters after the meeting with Chung 
that the ministry had invited Hyundai to take part in the 
Southern Seaboard project, which is to include a refinery 
and petrochemicals plants.

The minister also urged the Korean firm to participate in a 
project to lay down the 200-kilometre PTT gas pipeline for 
the Southern Seaboard programme.

Additionally, Chaiwat asked Hyundai to invest in a car 
assembly plant in Thailand.

Hyundai currently exports 5,0007,000 cars to Thailand each 
year.

Chaiwat said that apart from expanding its market base by 
moving into Thailand, an assembly plant here would also help 
the Korean car company penetrate other potentially lucrative 
markets throughout Indochina.

Sivavong Changkasiri, permanent secretary, Industry 
Ministry, said that he asked Hyundai to speed up the NFC 
project to enable it to begin operations by April next year, 
as scheduled.  (TN)

***************

THE NATION: AMERICAN STUDENTS FIGHT US PRESENCE IN BURMA

April 11, 1996

WASHINGTON -American college students have pressured Harvard 
University to scrap a million-dollar deal with PepsiCo Inc. 
because the firm does business in military-ruled Burma, 
activists said.

In a modest victory for Burma?s United States-based critics, 
Harvard abandoned plans to switch from Coca-Cola to Pepsi in 
university dining halls after students protested against 
PepsiCo's presence in Burma, they said.

"This is a wonderful development, said Simon Billenness, 
senior analyst at the Boston-based Franklin Research and 
Development Corp and an outspoken critic of the junta in 
Rangoon.

Harvard scrapped plans to transfer a five-year, US$200,000 
(Bt5 million) a year contract to Pepsi after students 
objected, said Billenness, whose firm manages a $500 million 
portfolio for clients who favour "@y responsible" 
investment.(TN)

***************

THE NATION: BRITAIN LEADS OVERSEAS INVESTMENT IN BURMA

April 11, 1996

RANGOON - Foreign investment in Burma amounted to US$3.24 
billion (Bt8l billion) as of the end of March, according to 
the latest Myanmar investment commission report.

Nineteen countries including Australia, Austria, Britain, 
China, Canada, France, Japan, Malaysia, South Korea, 
Singapore, Thailand and the United States, made the 
investment in the agricultural, fisheries, mining, 
manufacturing, oil and gas, gas, transport, hotels and 
tourism, real estate and industrial sectors.

'The highest investment is in the oil an gas sector 
amounting to $1.44 billion, followed by $647.63 million in 
hotels and tourism, $319.73 million in mining, $252.04 
million in fisheries; and $251.46 million in real estate.

Britain invested the most with $792.55 million in 19 
enterprises, followed by Singapore investing $603.88 million 
in 38 enterprises, France at $465 million in one enterprise.

Thailand invested $421.12 million in 29 enterprises, the US 
at $241.07 million in 11 enterprises, Malaysia at $227.27 
million in nine enterprises and Japan at $,119.88 million in 
seven enterprises. (TN)

*****************

BKK POST: ?BURMESE TROOPS? ROB DUTCH PAIR, RAPE WIFE
April 11,1996

A Dutch couple were allegedly robbed at gunpoint and the 
woman raped by Burmese soldiers at a border village near the 
Moei River yesterday.

The 32-year-old man told Mae Sot district police he and his 
27-year-old wife were attacked by five Burmese soldiers 
while visiting Ye Poo Pagoda in Ban Wang Takhian opposite 
Burma?s Wang Kha military camp.

He said the soldiers held him and his wife at gunpoint and 
took two mountain bikes, two wristwatches and several gold 
ornaments worth about 40,000 baht from them.

He said three soldiers then crossed the river bank into 
Burma, but two others raped his wife before freeing them. 
The woman was later taken to Pawor Hospital in Mae Sot. 

The couple have been working as researchers for a malaria 
research unit in Tha Song Yang District for seven months. 
(BP)

***************

BKK POST: GEN CHETHA KEEPS A LOW PROFILE
April 11,1996

Deputy Army Chief Gen Chetha Thanajaro has kept a low 
profile during the past several weeks after Prime Minister 
Banharn Silpa-archa completed his two-day official trip to 
Burma last month.

To the surprise of some military observers, Gen Chetha who 
played a key role to help strengthen ties and correct 
misunderstandings with key Burmese government officials was 
not included in the premier?s official delegation during the 
March 17-18 trip.

?Gen Chetha was excluded at the last minute after one key 
military officer from the Supreme Command objected to him 
joining the trip. Even Gen Chetha was surprised after he was 
told that his name was not on the official list,? noted an 
insider.

There have been widespread reports that Gen Chetha is at odd 
with Supreme Commander Gen Viroj Saengsanit, who will retire 
by the end of the year.

The insider said the deputy army commander, a strong 
candidate for the top army post by the end of the year when 
present Army Commander Gen Pramon Palasin will retire, was 
also aware that there was a move to discredit Gen Chetha?s 
public image by linking him with some tainted incidents. 
?Gen Chetha decided to keep a low profile after taking all 
circumstances into account,? noted the insider. 

However, Gen Chetha plans to make another trip to Burma 
where he will meet key military officers from the State Law 
and Order Restoration Council (Slorc).

The insider said Gen Chetha was hopeful that the pending 
trip could help pave the way for the re-construction of the 
Thai-Burmese friendship bridge which had been suspended 
since last year. (BP)

***************

BKK POST: PRISONERS TO BE FREED
April 11,1996

Burma has agreed to free 100 Thai prisoners as requested by 
Thailand to mark the 50th anniversary of His Majesty the 
King?s ascension to the throne, the Foreign Ministry said on 
Tuesday.

The prisoners, mostly fishermen, will be divided into three 
groups which are to be repatriated on April 19, 22 and 24. 
Thai diplomats in Rangoon met the prisoners last week to 
arrange identification papers to facilitate immigration 
procedures upon their arrival in Bangkok. (BP)

***************

BKK POST: INDIA, BURMA RECOMMENDED AS NEW ARF MEMBERS
April 11,1996
Jakarta, AFP

Senior officials of the Association of Southeast Asian 
Nations (Asean) agreed yesterday to recommend India and 
Burma as new members of the Asean Regional Forum (ARF), 
reports said.

The official Antara news agency quoted the foreign 
ministry?s Director General of Political Affairs Izhar 
Ibrahim as saying that agreement on the recommendation was 
reached at a three-day meeting in Surabaya, East Java.

The ARF is convened every year and focuses on regional 
security and political issues. The forum involves the seven 
members of Asean _ Brunei, Indonesia, Malaysia, the 
Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam _ and 
Australia, Canada, the European Union, Japan, New Zealand, 
South Korea and the United States. (BP)
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