YANGON: The Directorate of Investment and Company Administration (DICA) revealed that investors focused most on real estate and power in the months of October and November this year.
For the first two months of the 2019-2020 fiscal year, the DICA said the Myanmar Investment Commission (MIC) approved 41 investments worth US$1.3 billion.
This figure was triple that of US$465 million during the same period last year, indicating an encouraging interest in Myanmar from foreign investors.
According to the Myanmar Times, a bulk of the investment for this year — US$1.2 billion — went into real estate and power generation.
A joint venture between China National Technical Import and Export Corporation (CNTIC) and Hong Kong’s VPower Group received approval from the MIC on Nov 29 for a 400MW LNG power plant in Yangon Region worth US$360 million, and a 150MW LNG power plant in Rakhine State worth US$140 million.
MIC Secretary U Thant Sin Lwin said the projects were approved as they would bring more electricity and development to the country.
These investments come on the heels of the government’s revision of electricity rates in June.
Another project by Indian conglomerate Adani Group to construct a US$290 million port in Yangon was also greenlighted.
On Nov 29, the MIC approved the building of a large commercial development worth US$350 million by Hong Kong’s Goldman Fortune International.
The project, to be called the Mindama Complex, is expected to include commercial space, serviced apartments, a shopping mall, villas, an office building, condominiums and a hotel in Yangon Region.
A Thai developer also received approval to build a smart industrial park in Yangon Region. The property development projects were worth a combined total of US$767 million and are among the largest investments over the last year.
Hong Kong is now Myanmar’s fourth largest investor with a total of US$8.6 billion invested in 223 businesses in the country.