SAC Chair claims Myitsone dam could exceed nationwide power demand if implemented
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Phyo (NP News)- May 25
If the Myitsone Hydropower Project in Kachin State were implemented without being suspended, it could have not only met but exceed the power demand of the entire country, said Senior General Min Aung Hlaing, chairman of the State Administration Council (SAC).
He made the remarks at the second day of the SAC’s work coordination meeting in Naypyidaw on May 20, 2025.
The SAC Chairman said, “If the Myitsone Hydropower Project had not been suspended, it would have generated 6,000 megawatts. If the existing power plants and the Myitsone Hydropower Project were combined, it would not only meet but even exceed the electricity demand.”
The Myitsone Project is a large-scale project that will generate nearly 20,000 megawatts of electricity on the tributaries of the Myitsone River, located at the confluence of the May Kha and Mali Kha rivers, about 23 miles from Myitkyina, Kachin State.
Then-President U Thein Sein suspended the Myitsone Dam project in September 2011 amid the high escalation of the ‘No Dam in Ayeyawady River’ movement. However, the Myitsone issue was, in fact, driven by the political manipulation that fanned the flame of public sentiment objecting to the government, especially in the democratic transition period.
The Kachin Independence Army (KIA), devotees of Christianity, started a fight with Myanmar Tatmadaw under the Myitsone issue in June 2011. The KIA, backed by the West bloc, first opposed the Chinese-backed mega project in Myanmar by military means in 2011. After that, many public voices of ‘No Dam in Ayeyawady River’ and ‘No Chinese mega project in Myanmar’ were instigated.
Currently, electricity is not available throughout Myanmar, resulting in at least 4 hours of outages per day, with some areas experiencing up to 16 hours of outages per day, even in Yangon Region.