UK Government to strengthen gas sector in Myanmar

UK Government to strengthen gas sector in Myanmar

A UK Government-supported programme, to strengthen the development of a
modern, dynamic oil and gas sector in Myanmar, is to be launched later this
month, according to a joint press release from the British Embassy in Yangon
and Aberdeen International Associates (AIA).

Mr Gordon McIntosh, Aberdeen City Council's former Director of Enterprise,
Planning and Infrastructure, and now Director and Chairman of AIA, will
visit Myanmar from 17-23 October. He will meet with Myanmar's Government to
identify areas where British expertise and experience can help build the
capacity of government officials in areas of offshore oil and gas.

AIA will also work with a targeted number of local businesses to identify
their capacity and training requirements, including the need for
international certification to enable them to tender for contracts from
International Oil and Gas companies. An important part of this work will be
to identify which sectors of the industry these businesses would like to
move into in the future and then identify the training and certification
required to help them achieve success.

The project owes its development to a visit by a senior delegation of
Government of Myanmar officials and businesses to Aberdeen, Scotland in
September 2015. During the visit the group received a presentation from Mr
McIntosh and expressed an interest to learn more about the Aberdeen
experience and how it could provide some guidance for Myanmar's developing
industry. Much of Myanmar's oil and gas resources are in deep water, where
the UK has internationally recognised expertise as a result of North Sea
exploration. UK companies are already active in the country. Of the 20
offshore licenses awarded in 2014, 8 went to British companies.

As part of this programme of work, in August 2016 a course on Subsurface
Technical Fundamentals was successfully delivered to officials from the
Myanmar Oil and Gas Enterprise (MOGE) by AIA's partners in this project, AGR
TRACS.

In the meantime a list of UK training and certification companies that are
interested in working and supporting development in Myanmar is being drawn
up with the aim being to encourage these businesses to travel in the future
as part of a UK-Government sponsored delegation. UK organisations will also
be encouraged to partner with local businesses to help develop the sector.

Mr Tony Preston, Head of Prosperity at the British Embassy, said:

"Burma is one of the world's oldest oil producers. The industry also has
historic links to the UK and Scotland in particular. In 1886 the Scottish
owned Burmah Oil was the first foreign firm to drill for oil in Burma. But
the UK's interest in Burma's oil and gas sector is not just historic. In
2016,Burma is already the 10th largest producer of natural gas globally and
has potential to move much higher up that list. Today, this sector is the
biggest contributor to the country's national budget, and absolutely
essential for its future prosperity.

To maximise its potential, and to keep as much of the jobs and revenue as
possible in country, will need the development of domestic expertise in the
areas of geoscience, petroleum engineering, but also standards and working
practices in procurement, health & safety and quality.

The UK Government, and our private sector, wishes to harness our North Sea
experience to support Burma's Government and industry in developing a world
class sub-sea centre of excellence, to develop its own Oil and Gas
infrastructure and to enhance the capacity of its business community such
that it can play an increasing role in Burma, South-East Asia and the
world."

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Ref:
http://www.mizzima.com/business-domestic/uk-government-strengthengas-sector-
myanmar

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John Diecker
APT Consulting Group Co., Ltd.

www.aptthailand.com