Publications

Survey of Energy Resources 2007

Hydropower Country Notes

Myanmar

The country is well endowed with hydro resources: its technically feasible potential is given by Hydropower & Dams World Atlas 2006 as 37 000 MW. At an assumed annual capacity factor of 0.40, this level would imply an annual output capability of approximately 130 TWh; actual output in 2005 was only 3.0 TWh. There thus appears to be ample scope for substantial development of hydropower in the long term.

Current hydro capacity is about 745 MW, but plants under construction will substantially increase this total within a few years. Twelve hydro plants, with a total capacity of 1 786 MW, were reported to be under construction at end-2005. The major stations involved were a 400 MW plant on the Shweli river in northeast Myanmar, due for completion in June 2007, and Yeywa (790 MW) on the Myitnge towards the centre of the country, scheduled to come into service in June 2008. Longer-term projects under consideration include a major export-orientated scheme, Ta Sang (7 110 MW), from which it is planned to export
1 500 MW to Thailand by 2010.