New oxygen generator to be installed in Sittwe to meet Covid demand

By DMG 11 Jul 2021

DMG Newsroom
11 July 2021, Sittwe 

A new oxygen plant will come online by month’s end in Sittwe, Arakan State, according to U Tun Tun Oo, owner of the BMG drinking water factory involved in procuring the machine, as demand for oxygen rises alongside the state’s Covid-19 case count. 

Construction of the plant is reportedly complete with the exception of the installation of its oxygen generator, which will arrive in the Arakan State capital later this month and will be operational upon arrival. 

“About a week ago, an oxygen generator was ordered from China,” U Tun Tun Oo said. “The ship carrying the oxygen generator is expected to arrive in Yangon on the 20th of this month. Then, as soon as the oxygen generator arrives in Arakan State, it can start operating.” 

The oxygen generated will be donated to the needy and sold to businesses at a reasonable price, he added. 

“I aim to donate oxygen to places where it is really needed and sell it to other businesses, such as private clinics, at a reasonable price, so that there is no need to rely on mainland Myanmar to get oxygen,” U Tun Tun Oo said. 

“I did not buy the oxygen generator for commercial purposes, but for the purpose of donating to philanthropists and making it more affordable for the local community,” he added.  

Severe cases of Covid-19, a respiratory disease, are often treated with oxygen therapy. 

As demand for oxygen increases, efforts are being made to install oxygen generators in some Arakan State townships, such as Thandwe, Taungup, Kyaukphyu and Sittwe.  

U Hla Thein, a member of the Arakan State Administration Council, has previously downplayed the prospect of oxygen shortages in Arakan State, saying the local government was planning to provide sufficient oxygen to those patients in need. 

During the ongoing third wave of Covid-19 (since May), a total of 793 infections and 12 deaths had been reported in Arakan State as of July 10, according to the state’s Department of Public Health.