INDIA has granted Myanmar a US$60-million loan to help fund construction of the Thahtay Chaung hydropower project in Rakhine State, monthly UK magazine International Water Power and Dam Construction reported last week.

The funds are to be made available via a Line of Credit (LoC) agreement between the governments. India is channelling the LoC to the Myanmar Foreign Trade Bank through the use of the Export-Import Bank of India, which is the vehicle it uses to support foreign industrial activity, the report said.

The Thahtay Chaung project is to have an installed capacity of 100 megawatts. The early data on the project, from two to three years ago, indicated that the power plant would be built to hold four 25mw units. However, earlier this year official sources said that the plant would be equipped with three 37.5mw units.

Thahtay Chaung is being built about 20 kilometres northeast of Thandwe in Rakhine State – the region it will supply electricity to as well as the hotel sector at Ngapali Beach, according to official sources.

According to the Export-Import Bank of India bank, the LoC is the first it has made for a hydropower project in Myanmar.