Thilawa SEZ Receives US$900 Million in Foreign Investment

By May Soe San 22 December 2016

RANGOON — Japan-backed Thilawa Special Economic Zone (SEZ) in Rangoon’s Thanlyin Township has received more than US$900 million in foreign investment since its launch in 2014, said a recent report issued by the Myanmar Investment Commission (MIC).

“Since the start of the operation, the SEZ has received US$903 million foreign investment,” MIC secretary U Aung Naing Oo told The Irrawaddy.

Since 2014, the MIC has given the green light to 75 businesses from 17 countries to operate in the economic zone. So far, 19 factories have started production, according to the MIC report.

Japan is the largest investor in the Thilawa SEZ, followed by Hong Kong, China, Korea, Singapore and the United States.

From April to December of the current fiscal year, the SEZ received US$190 million in foreign investment, said U Aung Naing Oo.

The industrial production sector has received about 76.5 percent of foreign investment; the transportation sector, 8 percent; the service industry, 7.5 percent; the real estate industry, 2 percent; and trading, 6 percent, according to a spokesperson from MIC.

Burma has received a total of US$3.65 billion in foreign investment during the 2016-17 fiscal year—a decline of US$1.3 billion compared to the same period last year.

Covering 6,200-acres, the industrial project is a joint venture between the governments of Burma and Japan and consortiums including Japan Thilawa Development Co Ltd backed by Mitsubishi, Marubeni and Sumitomo corporations, Myanmar Thilawa SEZ Holdings backed by local companies, the Thilawa SEZ management committee and the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA).