YANGON: Myanmar’s businesses will be left without power for five hours a night for much of this month to allow students to burn the midnight oil, a stark illustration of how energy shortages are forcing tough choices and worsening already acute economic pain.
State-owned Yangon Electricity Supply Corp will prohibit customers from using electricity for commercial purposes between 5pm and 10pm until March 20, according to a statement. The utility blamed the decision on the need to help students study for exams that are set to be held through mid-March.
Since a military junta seized control in 2021 and deposed former leader Aung San Suu Kyi, sanctions have left buyers unable to easily access United States dollars for fuel purchases, and Myanmar has struggled to keep the lights on. The global energy crisis last year darkened the picture further, as import prices rose, triggering shortages and blackouts in Myanmar and many other developing nations in Asia.
To help ease the energy shortage, Myanmar’s military-led government has bought Russian fuel oil shipments but it is unclear how much has arrived so far.
Blackouts are not a new headache for Myanmar, but outages in Yangon and other cities worsened last year, lasting half the day. They have been more severe outside large cities though, and the decision to limit commercial use in Yangon is a rare move.
Myanmar’s energy sector has been weakened by the pullout of foreign firms after the coup. A subsidiary of Thai state-owned energy company PTT Pcl recently postponed a US$2 billion generation project, Nikkei Asia reported, following the exit of multinationals including Chevron Corp and TotalEnergies SA.