Thais top Burma investor, state news service reports

Friday, 23 April 2010 23:19 Usa Pichai

Chiang Mai (Mizzima) - Thailand ranked first among country investors into Burma in the 10 years up to 2008, mainly is energy businesses, ahead of Britain and Singapore who apparently take second and third place.
Wassana Mututanond, Thailand’s Board of Investment (BoI) investment advisor said Thailand had invested US$7.41 billion in Burma between 1988 and last year, making it the top investor in Burma in terms of investment value, according to a report on the Thai News Agency website on Friday.

The greatest proportion of investment in Burma by Thailand was in the energy (electricity) sector at 81.7 per cent of total investment, with 8.33 per cent spent on the manufacturing industry and 3.1 per cent in the hotels and tourism.

“Industries that give Thai investors opportunities to invest in Myanmar include agriculture, processed foods, leather, precious stones and mining, and tourism,” She added.

The BoI would conduct 13 events and activities locally and overseas in this fiscal year, she said, it would: provide information; consulting services; help form a state- and private-sector network; and set a forum for “business matching”.

Thailand has major natural-gas development deals with Burma in the Andaman Sea in addition to hydroelectric dam projects. China is a joint developer on the latter.

Human rights groups have urged the Thai government to delay its mega-dam projects in Burma, and to play a stronger role within Asean to urge the Burmese junta to move towards democracy and human rights.

Samart Loifa, Tak province governor told a trading conference on Tuesday the province had plans to develop a route from Mae Sot, through Myawaddy and Moulmein to Rangoon which he claimed would benefit manufacturing investment, agricultural business and tourism.

Trading at the Mae Sot-Myawaddy border crossing had risen 49 per cent year to date compared with the same period last year, according to Mae Sot customs office director Pimkarn Lorsiripaibooon.

She added that in the first four months the total trade across this border was estimated at more than 10 billion baht (US$300 million).