China-Myanmar oil pipe to open in May

Oil from the Middle East and natural gas could be flowing through pipelines from Myanmar to China by the end of May "if everything goes as planned", China National Petroleum Corporation (CNPC) said yesterday, after Deputy Foreign Minister Fu Ying's trip to Myanmar on Saturday.

The main parts of the pipelines in Myanmar were finished and those in Yunnan would be completed this month, the head of the CNPC project, Gao Jianguo , told Xinhua.

The 1,100-kilometre pipelines, from the port of Kyaukpyu in Myanmar to Ruili city in Yunnan, could transport 22 million tonnes of oil and 12 billion cubic metres of natural gas a year.

Oil will be shipped from the Middle East through the Indian Ocean before reaching Myanmar and China, instead of passing through the Strait of Malacca. The gas will come from Myanmar's Shwe gas fields, in the Bay of Bengal.

However, analysts interpreted CNPC's statement - "if everything goes as planned" - as an indication that the US$2.5 billion project still faced uncertainties.

Bilateral ties have become tricky following political reforms implemented by Myanmar since 2011 and its opening up to Western countries, highlighted by US President Barack Obama's visit to Myanmar in November.

Myanmar's decision to suspend a US$3.6 billion dam project that featured Chinese involvement cast another shadow over Sino-Myanmese relations.