Protest planned to call for the permanent closure of Tikyit coal-fired power plant

26 October 2019
Protest planned to call for the permanent closure of Tikyit coal-fired power plant
Scene of local people stage protest demonstration in April 2019. Photo: Phyo Thiha Cho

NGOs and local people in Pinlaung Town are preparing for a 1,000-strong protest demonstration calling for the permanent closure of Tikyit coal-fired power plant and coal mine in Pinlaung Township, southern Shan State, on October 30. 

Protest demonstration leader Ko Moe said, “Myanmar Eguadr Company did Environmental Impact Assessment for this project and the report has been sent to Union Environment Conservation Department. Suggestions are invited on this report and the deadline of sending suggestions is October 30. The first point is the report submitted by Eguadr is contrary to the procedures and this report is not prepared by following proper regulation and guidelines so that it is not the good report. They wrote in this report to mislead the decision makers and made them wary and confuse in making their decisions. This is not the perfect and comprehensive report. And then we do not agree with the permission given by Union Electricity and Energy Ministry for 3-year extension of test run of this power plant in violation of law. We stage this protest demonstration as these issues are contrary to the law.”

The organizers of this protest demonstration reportedly submitted their application letter asking for permission as per section 4 of Peaceful Demonstration and Peaceful Marching in Procession at Pinlaung police station on October 20 in accordance with all procedures.

The protesters will reportedly march in procession along Tikyit-Pinlaung highway starting from Agriculture Department Office and will stop at warehouse of Tikyit coal-fired power plant and they will reportedly chant slogans of ‘Closure of Tikyit coal-fired power plant’, ‘Closure of Aden Coal Mine’, ‘We don’t want Wuxi Hua Guan Company’, ‘We don’t want Aden Company’ etc. along their marching route.

Chinese Wuxi Hua Guan Company has got 22-year lease for operating of this Tikyit coal-fired power plant. The Tikyit coal mine covers the vast area of 500 acres of land and it produces about 2,000 tons of coal every day.

The statement of this protest demonstration says that over 400 people of about 70 households from Taung Laboe and Lai Kha villages had to be relocated since the start of this coal mining project in 2013 and bad impacts fell on local people by these Tikyit coal mining and coal-fired power plant.

In the past too, thousands of local people staged demonstration on April 6, 2019 and demanded for closure of Tikyit coal-fired power plant.