Myanmar will grant 13 new blocks in the country's offshore areas for foreign investment in oil and gas exploration and production.
The new blocks include eight in the gulf of Mottama and five off the Rakhine coast, accordinf to project officials of the Ministry of Energy.
The country has designated a total of about 600 blocks 320 kilometers within Myanmar territorial waters for oil and gas exploration, of which 25 are under exploration. Of the 25, 12 are located in the gulf of Mottma, six off the Tanintharyi coast and seven off the Rakhine coast.
Since Myanmar opened to foreign investment in the sector in 1988, oil companies from a dozen countries have stepped in. Outstanding investments in the area include the Yadana gas field project in the gulf of Mottama and the Yetagun one off the Tanintharyi coast.
The Yadana involves multi-national companies of PTTEP () , TOTAL (France), UNOCAL (the ) and MOGE (Myanmar), while the Yetagun includes PTTEP (Thailand), Petronas (), Nippon () and MOGE (Myanmar).