On 12 June 2019, the Division of Industry and Commerce, Vientiane (“DIC-Vte”) issued Instruction No. 0651 (the “Instruction”) regarding measures to be taken against the illegal operation of businesses by foreigners. The Instruction’s scope covers foreigners who operate unapproved businesses, defined as those who: Operate a business without an enterprise registration certificate (“ERC”) or business […]

Quite an eventful week for the power sector in Myanmar with the announcement of new electricity tariff for customers, the issuance of tender documents for five rental projects as well as the appointment of a new managing director of the Electric Power Generation Enterprise (“EPGE”) . Highlights of this note New Managing Director at EPGE […]

Lack of electricity generation and the growing demand in power supply have led the government of Myanmar to resort to short-term power rental projects to feed electricity into the grid as early as 2014 when the government awarded a number of power rental projects to companies such as Aggreko and APR Energy. Highlights of this […]

With the recent celebration of our seventh anniversary as well as the upcoming Thingyan Festival in Myanmar, we at VDB Loi would like to thank you for your continued support. We are very pleased to share with you some of VDB Loi’s best moments and achievements over the past year. We are delighted to report […]

VDB Loi contributed to the 2019 edition of the Project Finance Market Intelligencepublication by Getting the Deal Through. VDB Loi team prepared a regional project finance overview for Southeast Asia. Please download the pdf version below.

According to the recent Directorate of Investment and Company Administration (“DICA”) announcement issued on 8th March 2019, companies who missed the 31 January deadline now have until March 30 to re-register. However, any companies who fail to re-register by this new deadline will be struck off from the registry, and will not be able to carry on business […]

The energy and infrastructure team in our firm has one goal: using the unique local knowledge and relationships we have spent years building up, to give your deal the edge. We are the ultimate in ground connectivity. International financial institutions are confident in our advice, choosing us for several of their largest-ever financing transactions in […]

On 30 November 2018, the President’s Office issued a Notification on a publicly assessible database, the Project Bank, which will help to regulate Private Public Partnership (“PPP”) projects in Myanmar. The government hopes the Project Bank will enable greater transparency, facilitate cooperation between different government agencies, and strengthen fiscal policy on infrastructure. The primary purpose […]

Electricite du Cambodge (“EDC”) has finally issued the long-awaited tender for the development of a 60MW solar power plant to be connected to the national grid, which is Phase 1 of a planned 100MW solar power park. On 13 February 2019, EDC issued an invitation for bids for the development, design, finance, construction, operation, and […]

According to a previous notice of the Ministry of Commerce (“MOC”) dated 22 December 2017, all corporate entities were required to complete their online re-registration with the MOC by 31 December 2018. Recently, the MOC issued another notice, No. 0384, dated 30 January 2019, regarding further extension of the online re-registration deadline to 31 December […]

Financing and tax 2018 saw several changes to the tax regulations. The application of transfer pricing rules in Cambodia is now a reality. Starting from 2018, companies have to comply with the regulations issued in October 2017, which adopt the arm’s length principle in accordance with the OECD’s guidelines. The regulations left many questions unanswered, […]

Looking back, it is evident that 2018 has seen a lot of changes in the Myanmar legal framework. There is also a number of developments that can be expected in the near future. Banking regulations Until early November, foreign bank branches could only provide banking services to foreign companies, i.e., companies incorporated in Myanmar with […]

Further to the amendment in 2018 of the Labor Law and Prakas 443 on seniority payment, which is applicable to all existing unlimited duration contracts (for more details, please see our Cambodia legal update here), the Ministry of Labor and Vocational Training (“MLVT”), through its information declaration on seniority payments dated 28 December 2018, has provided […]

A total of 12 prequalification applications have been received by the Ministry of Construction on 13 November 2018 for the first phase of the Yangon Elevated Expressway project. As expected, and given the size of the project, most of the applicants are consortia. Only French construction company Vinci Highways, Chinese companies China Communications Construction Company […]

Myanmar is undertaking a series of reforms, both in terms of laws and policies, that strengthen the country’s attractiveness for energy and infrastructure projects. Many of these reforms, although they are crucial, are not widely known outside of Myanmar. Highlights of this note Major Projects in the Pipeline Reform of the Project Procurement Process: the […]

The Ministry of Labour, Immigration and Population published the Leave and Holidays Rules (Notification 69/2018) and the Shops and Establishment Rules (Notification 68/2018) (the “Rules”) which implement the relevant laws. The Rules provide new forms for use by employers in lodgments to labor offices, and clarify entitlements relating to days off, public holidays, leave and […]

Parliament is currently debating a bill on petroleum exploration, drilling, and production, which is intended to apply to both offshore and onshore activities. The law will mainly repeal outdated regulations from the 1950s and intends to serve as a way of organizing the sector. The bill follows the long-awaited Mining Rules issued in February 2018 […]

Seniority payment On 11 July 2018, the Labor Law was amended by Royal Decree (“Labor Law Amendment”), particularly Articles 89, 90, 91, 94, 110, 120, and 122. One notable amendment is the elimination of the “indemnity for dismissal”, which is equivalent to severance pay and paid upon employment termination only, and the introduction of the […]

電力不足解消へ窮余の策日本経済新聞　朝刊 日本経済新聞9月21日朝刊に「ミャンマー、LNG発電所急ぐ　–電力不足解消へ窮余の策」のタイトルでミャンマー電力事情の紹介記事が掲載されました。VDB-Loi エドウィンのコメントが紹介されました。 停電が日常茶飯事で、工場は自家発電機なしでは成り立たない――。そんなミャンマーの電力事情に希望の明かりがともっている。何事も政策決定に時間がかかるミャンマー政府だが、電力分野ではスピードを速めているからだ。 政府は1月、液化天然ガス（LNG）を燃料とする火力発電所を建設する3つの事業計画にゴーサインを出した。このうち規模が大きいのは2カ所。南部のタイ国境近くでは仏トタルと独シーメンスが出力123万キロワット、中部デルタ地帯では中国の浙富控股集団が現地企業と合弁で139万キロワットの発電所を建設する。投資額はそれぞれ約25億ドル（約2800億円）。2カ所だけで現在の国全体の発電能力の46%に相当する。 こうした動きを主導するのがウィン・カイン電力・エネルギー相だ。ミャンマーは天然ガス産出国だが、中国やタイへの輸出契約に縛られ、国内向けは今後不足する。初めてとなるLNG輸入には賛否があるが、「LNGを輸入しなければ電力不足になる」と押し切った。 「2018年はミャンマー政府が革新的な手法を導入した年として記憶されるだろう」。今回の事業に関わるヤンゴン拠点の弁護士事務所、VDB・Loiのエドウィン・ベンダーブルゲン代表は前向きに評価する。 ウィン・カイン氏は今回、政府内の合意形成に時間がかかる覚書締結の手続きを飛ばし、省庁による通知で事業者を選定。電力買い上げ条件などは事後に話し合う。新手法は水力発電所のプロジェクトにも適用され、8～9月には関西電力や丸紅が参加する2カ所の水力発電所にも通知が出た。批判はあるものの、事業を早く進めるには有効だ。 都市化の進展や農村の電力網整備に伴い、ミャンマーの電力需要は25年に現在の2倍の800万キロワットに達する見込み。水力発電所などは稼働が安定しないため、発電容量では追加で700万～1000万キロワット必要になる。 ただ、電力価格の交渉が順調に進むかは不透明だ。現在の電力料金は発電コストを下回り、補助金で支える「逆ざや」の状態。英大学系の政策支援機関インターナショナル・グロース・センターによると、コスト超過は15年以降に急増した。 政府は事業者に払う費用の値切りに懸命だ。コストが見合わなければ交渉決裂の恐れもある。消費者向けの電力料金引き上げが不可欠だという認識は政府にもあるが、20年に総選挙を控え、様子見をきめこむ。 環境への負荷が大きい石炭火力発電の扱いなど将来のエネルギー計画には曖昧さが残る。複数の業界関係者は「LNG火力の3案件が全て実現するとは考えにくいが、1カ所でも前進してくれれば」。逆に実現しなければ、ミャンマーの電力不足は深刻になる。 （ヤンゴン=新田裕一）

The recently effective Myanmar Companies Law (the “MCL”) brings about groundbreaking changes to the corporate landscape in Myanmar, as it modernizes the rules related to entities (companies, branches and representative offices) conducting business in Myanmar. Despite the changes companies still need to act so they can reap the benefits of the new measures. In this […]