The modern Burmese State 1 has never exerted total and uncontested sovereignty within all
its demarcated states. Since independence in 1948, Burma has attempted to extend its control and
assert its authority over the whole of a territory bequeathed by the British colonial rulers. Yet, it
was only after the 1988 takeover by a new generation of military officers, in response to
widespread popular demonstrations, that Myanmar State building projects moved forward
substantially, and thus started to assert more State power in the peripheral regions.
The conclusion of ceasefire agreements after 1988 between the newly installed junta and
numerous long standing armed groups organized along ethnic lines as well as the growth of
diplomatic and economic relations with neighbouring countries contributed to the Myanmar State
gaining administrative and military control over a larger portion of its territory, especially
peripheral areas characterized by mountainous landscapes, and a low density of non Bamar
populations where insurgents had been active for decades.2 These regions were not only well endowed with natural resources – especially precious woods, minerals and gems – they also were
situated on or close to the country’s borders with China, Thailand and India. Beyond the
willingness to extend its outreach and assert its authority, the Myanmar State intended to use these
peripheral regions to promote economic development in the country through the exploitation of
resources and the opening of border trade in a context of a transition from a socialist to a marketoriented
economy that started after 1988. Economic control over these areas was thus a strategic
objective within the Myanmar State building project.
Simultaneously, the junta initiated country wide infrastructure development works with a
strong focus on transportation (roads, bridges, etc.), sometimes with the support of neighbouring
countries. Transportation of goods and people within Myanmar and with Thailand, China and
India as well as access to remote areas all improved. Yet, the social consequences of infrastructure
works were strongly negative for populations with land confiscation and forced labour being
common while little or no attention was paid to environmental considerations.
This paper presents two large scale infrastructure projects in the energy sector currently in
their preliminary construction phase in Myanmar; the Myitsone Hydropower Dam project on the
Ayeyarwady River in Kachin state and the Oil and Gas Pipelines project that will cross the
Myanmar territory from the Gulf of Bengal to the Sino-Myanmar border. These two projects are
funded and carried out by Chinese State owned companies and they are the result of official
negotiations and agreements between Myanmar and China, whose diplomatic, military and
economic relations have developed tremendously over the last 20 years. These two projects
epitomize the mutual benefits that cooperation in the infrastructure sector bring about for the two
States involved; energy security for China and economic State building projects for the Myanmar
regime. These projects also illustrate the social and environmental risks faced to local Myanmar
populations.