Myanmar will restart Pinpet factory in fiscal year 2023-2024

Myanmar plans to restart the Russian-backed Pinpet plantin Shan State in the financial year 2023-2024, according to the chairman of theState Administration Council (SAC) Senior General Min Aung Hlaing.

The SAC chairman went to No.2 SteelMill Project (Pinpet) operated by No.1 Heavy Industrial Enterprise under theMinistry of Industry near Pin Ngo Village of Pinpet region of TaunggyiTownship, southern Shan State on 1 October 2021. The resumption of this steelproject aims to replace steel imports and reduce the use of foreigncurrency, Kallanish notes.

The plant is a joint ironmining and steelmaking project between the military-owned MyanmarEconomic Corporation (MEC) and state-owned Russian company Tyazhpromexport. In2016, the state-run Global News Light of Myanmar announced that the mines nearthe mill could possibly produce 10.7 million tonnes of hematite iron ore with56.4% Fe content and 59.3mt of limonite iron ore with 42.6% Fe. The pigiron from the smelter was to be used as a raw material for steel production atthe No.1 Steel Mill at Myingyan, in the Mandalay Region.