"Villagers Voice Opposition to Coal-Fired Power Plant in Western Myanmar", 6 May 2015

Hundreds of residents from a township in western Myanmar expressed their opposition to a Korean coal-fired power plant when they met...with officials from companies involved in the project. The U.S. $2.5 billion project, which will be built on 600 acres of land in Kyaukphyu township in Rakhine state, is a joint venture of MCM Energy, Daewoo Company and Myanmar’s Ministry of Electric Power. Company officials told the 400 residents who attended the meeting that they would benefit from the coal-fired power plant because it would help develop the region and provide electricity not only to towns and cities, but also to villages...They also said they would build roads, bridges and schools in the township...But most local residents oppose the project because they are concerned about environmental damage and the affects that the coal-fired power plant will have on their health. Company officials said that they would build the project with the latest technology to reduce emissions, but residents said they did not believe them. Maung Maung Ohn, chief minister of Rakhine state, told attendees that the project would not be implemented if local residents did not agree to it. [refers to Toyo-Thai]