Eye on Myanmarís Gas Reserves
According to a data released by the Myanmar Oil and Gas Enterprise (MOGE) the gas
reserve in Myanmar is considered very huge. The recoverable natural gas resources in Myanmar are estimated at 51 trillion cubic feet (tcf).
The first offshore gas project was developed at the cost of US$1.2 billion off Moattama (Blocks M5 and 6) and called Yadana. It started exporting gas to Thailand in 1988. The second offshore project costing about US$700 million lies off the Tanintharyi coast in the southeast and is called Yetagun (Blocks M12, 13, and 14). These reserves are estimated at 3.2 tcf. Block A1 off the Rakhine coast is being explored by a consortium led by Daewoo, including two Indian companies (ONGC Videsh and GAIL). The site is called Shwe and could yield around 4.2 to 5.8 tcf. Further explorations are carried out in blocks adjacent to A1, in what is known as Block A3. On 16 June 2006 it was reported that GAIL and ONGC found a huge gas field in Block A3 termed the Mya-1 find, 57.6 million cubic feet of gas per day flowed during the testing period.
Many more sites are being explored and they are being developed by multinational companies which include Total (French), Unocal (United States) and various Indian, Korean, Malaysian, Chinese and Thai companies. On the other hand, Chinese companies have bought exploration rights to seven blocks covering an area of over 9.58 million hectares (MOGE).
Over the years, several pipeline routes have been discussed by India and Myanmar:
1. Underwater from Shwe to Yechaungbyi village Sittwe township; following the Kaladan River valley through Rakhine and Chin states; into Mizoram and Tripura states; entering Bangladesh at Brahmanbaria through the Rajshahi border into West Bengal to Kolkata. Construction cost approximately US$1 billion.
2.Underwater from Shwe to Palechaung village Sittwe township; through Rakhine state into the district of southern Bangladesh; entering West Bengal into Kolkata. Construction cost approximately US$1 billion.
3.Underwater from Shwe to West Bengal into Kolkata. No cost estimate made public.
4.Underwater from Shwe to a Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) terminal on the Rakhine coastline, freezing the gas to 161 degrees Celsius and shipping the LNG to West Bengal and Kolkata by LNG tanker. Estimated cost for the LNG terminal US$3ñ5 billion.
5.As in the first, but bypassing Bangladesh totally and travelling through the northeast. Construction cost approximately US$3 billion.
For further information visit, http://www.shwe.org/ Importance of North East India
The proposed pipeline routes ultimately brought North East region into a central position of India's Look East Policy. The Region is primarily inevitable especially when India's neighbouring Bangladesh is unenthusiastic to sell her gas and oil. The region once term as "Mongoloid fringe", "The Sick Child of India", etc. is now the most important region to meet India's domestic energy requirements.
The four states of Mizoram, Manipur, Nagaland and Arunachal Pradesh shares 1,643 kilometre-long common international border with Myanmar or in short 2 per cent of the border with the Indian mainland and 98 per cent with the bordering countries of India. The region constitutes roughly of 7.98 per cent of the countryís geographical area and accounts for around 3.79 per cent of the total population. Many tribes of this region are ethnically linked to tribes on the Myanmar side of the border.
Trade between the people living along the Indo-Myanmar border existed even prior to the British Rule. After Indiaís Independence in 1947, the informal trade between India and Myanmar became the international border trade. With the bilateral border trade agreement of 1994 trade is currently carried out through three designated border points one each in Manipur, Mizoram and Nagaland. Apart from this, other trade centres are also proposed but Myanmar is still reluctant, at this stage.
Mooting the idea of "Geography as Opportunity", in his famous Shillong speech, on June 16, 2007, the then External Affairs Minister Pranab Mukherjee said: I am convinced that by gradually integrating this region through cross-border market access, the North-eastern states can become the bridge between the Indian economy and what is beyond doubt the fastest growing and dynamic region in the world.....geography is opportunity and the very geographical location of the Northeast makes it the doorway to Southeast and East Asia and vice versa, a doorway for these economies into India.
Manipur’s Future Aligned with the pipeline project, Manipur is also as important as any other states of the region. However, Indiaís new approach of problem management of North East India threatens the sanctity of over 60 yearsí boundaries, within the region. Of all the states in the region, Manipur will suffer the maximum disaster if India acts as a demi-God, providing all ethnic tribesí demands. The recent step of the Indian govern- ment to broker peace with the National Socialist Council of Nagaland (NSCN-IM) seeks to resolve the Naga issue alone.
The irony of Manipur is that it comprises three dis- tinctive ethnic communities: Kukis, Meiteis and Nagas. Each community has different political agenda, claims to share and participation in the process of governance. When two communities among them have contesting opinions, the third one observes. In this evironment, if the Government of India takes a decision to appease one particular tribe, the remaining two will never concur. But there is hardly any place n the whole world like Manipur and Nagaland where ariety of ethnic communities lives together within small provinces.
Conclusion
India’s trade with Myanmar never meets its projected expectations and it shows a decline during 2007- 2008. On the other hand, Myanmarís border trade with China during the same time was around $977 million, while with India, a meagre $15 million. Above all, India is unable to import sufficient amount of gas from the resource-rich Myanmar, despite making significant investments in its oil and gas fields (Business Daily, Tuesday, Mar 23, 2010). All these are attributed to the rise of insurgency in North East as the primary cause.
In recent years, the need for oil and gas for the rapidly growing economies of China and India has led to a competition for sourcing energy and exploration rights in Asia and around the globe, with both countries searching for hydrocarbons as far as Cuba. With these ambitions of India, I personally will not be surprised even if the most wanted criminal outlaws are awarded and decorated with the highest civilian award
"Baharat Ratna" if they can be instrumental. New Delhi is in dire need to solve all the problems in North East as soon as possible before the stocks of natural gas reserves go out of hand.
We can be of the opinion that, India will never stop looking East Asia, in-spite of the insurgency problems, Manipur integrity voices, southern Nagaland issue and other demands made in the North East. We understand that New Delhi should not be expected to have ready-made answers for the problems in North East India. Yet, it is the responsibility of us citizens and policy makers alike to bring a solution, how hard and
difficult it may be.
If we count ourselves us a distinct ethnic community, it is time we reflect on our cultures for peace. Peace will eludes as ever if we continue to pit one community against another. Setting our eyes at New Delhi for solutions in North East will either turn the region into another killing field or status of US militarization in Iraq. What is needed now is ëto learn to live togetherí which means solving our problems and tensions together.
If we have to make a shining India, now is the time for change.
