Steel Manufacturing: PM inspects No.1 Steel Mill (Myingyan)

Chairman of the State Administration Council Prime Minister Senior General Min Aung Hlaing together with officials visited No.1 Steel Mill (Myingyan) of the Ministry of Industry in Myingyan Township, Mandalay region on Wednesday.

At the mill, Union Minister for Industry Dr Charlie Than and Deputy Minister U Yin Maung Nyunt reported on implementation of No.1 Steel Mill (Myingyan) project for 2022-2023 FY, salient points of the project, the project aim, its functions, the facts of Melt Shop-1, renovation of the mill for reoperating due to suspension of the factory project in late 2017, melting processes, difficulties in implementing the project and future plans. In response to the reports, the Prime Minister said that the country needs about 2 million tons of irons and steels annually and it spends a lot of foreign currencies.

There are electricity demands for manufacturing steels and it needs to make surveys for the sites where hydropower can be produced for sufficient electricity. Similarly, it is necessary to consider production of solar enenery. At present, the factory has completed a smelting workshop and the entire project needs to be implemented fully phase by phase.

The Prime Minister stressed on human resources that are necessary for steel manufacturing, arrangements for welfares of the staffs and plans to consider transporting raw materials to the factory and irons and steels that are produced by the factory by using electric trains in future, and future plans for operating the whole project.

On arrival at the Melt Shop-1 in the steel mill, the Prime Minister opened the Melt shop-1 and square steel billet block manufacturing industry as the relaunching of the Melt Shop-1 of No.1 Steel Mill (Myingyan). Later, the Prime Minister started to operate the melting industry in the electric melting shop. Afterwards, the Prime Minister and party inspected melting process and manufacturing square shape steel billet blocks at the melt shop-1 and gave necessary instructions on the reports of officials.

After that, the Prime Minsiter signed on the square steel billet block that was produced by the electric melting shop on 24th March 2023 and presented cash for the factory staff and officials of the factory gave in turn commemorative gifts. The Prime Minister also presented fruit basket to the foreign experts who are serving at the factory. After that, the Prime Minister went to Melt Shop-2 and inspected installation of machines and steel plates that were produced in 2016 and instructed the needs.

The Prime Minister and party then had lunch together with the staffs at the mess hall and gave encouragements for manufacturing of steels and cordially greeted them. No.1 Steel Mill (Myingyan) of the Ministry of Industry is located near Sar Khar village in Myingyan Township of Mandalay region and it was implemented in 2004 by signing contract. In 2016, the Melt Shop-2 started to produce 2,000 tons of steel plates.

When the project was suspended since March 15th 2017, the investment has reached over 403,932 million kyats and the project completion is 66.52 percent. The steel production industry is essential for the state. If the iron and steel production projects are successfully completed, it will reduce the imports of irons and steels from abroad and the irons and steels will be used at a lower price than the foreign price.

At the time of the State Administration Council Government, the steel factory projects were re-examined and operations were resumed. Currently, the Phase-1 of the Melt Shop-1 has been completed. When the Phase-1 is fully operated, the Phase-2 of Melt Shop-2 will continue to operate and efforts will be made to continue to operate fully the entire project phase by phase.