Despite township’s oil and gas endowments, over 150 villages in Kyaukphyu lack electricity access

07 Jan 2022

DMG Newsroom
7 January 2022, Kyaukphyu 

More than 150 villages in Arakan State’s Kyauktaw Township do not have access to 24-hour electricity, despite the township playing host to large-scale oil and gas extraction projects. 

There are 249 villages in Kyaukphyu Township, but only 86 of them have access to electricity around the clock. 

U Maung Khin Than, a resident of Pyaing Chaung village in Kyaukphyu Township, said electricity produced from solar panels was an imperfect substitute for an on-grid power supply. 

“We face trouble when a solar panel or inverter or battery malfunctions. We cannot afford to buy them very often as we are farmers. And we do not want to spend money for solar power because we are worried that we will have to double the cost when we have access to electricity. We will have to spend money to install power lines and electricity bills,” he explained. “We hope for the day when we have access to electricity.” 

U Aung Moe, a resident of Yaynan Dwain village in Kyaukphyu Township, said: “I think the lives of people who are doing business that depends on electricity will be improved when we have access to electricity.” 

U Thein Soe, chief electrical engineer in Kyaukphyu District, said the department will work to provide access to electricity in 22 villages where power lines have already been installed this month. 

Meanwhile, critics of Arakan State energy policy point out that an oil pipeline in Kyaukphyu Township is exporting up to 22 million tonnes of oil a year to China, with Myanmar taking only a fraction of that for its own use and receiving US$1 for each exported tonne. 

Alongside it, a natural gas pipeline in Kyaukphyu Township has been sending hundreds of millions of cubic feet of gas per year to China, and has been doing so since 2013. 

Some villages no more than 10 miles from the Arakan State capital Sittwe, too, have experienced delays gaining access to the on-grid electricity supply, resorting to solar power, firewood and charcoal to meet their energy needs. 

A total of 1,652 villages across Arakan State’s 17 townships did not have 24-hour electricity access as of 2020, according to figures from the Arakan State Electrical Engineer Office.