26 November 2023
False allegations that the No.2 Pangpet Steel Mill Project, which is being implemented under the Ministry of Industry in Namt Hsi Village-tract, Taunggyi Township of ShanState, is involved in weapon manufacturing and attempts at nuclear technology are circulating on the social media, according to an official from the Ministry of Industry.
The Pa-Oh Youth Organization (PYO) accused the plant of producing weapons as well as carrying out uranium-related activities, and reported that it has caused adverse impacts on the livelihoods of thousands of local people living along Namttabet Creek, including the destruction of farmlands and the occurrence of many lung cancer cases among middle-aged residents, according to the State Administration Council’s press release today.
Commenting on that news, an official from the Ministry of Industry clarified that the accusation that arms are being manufactured at the mill is false. Another accusation that the mill activities have also expanded to nuclear matters is nonsensical in toto. The official added that the iron ore to be used in the mill to make steel mainly consists of hematite and limonite, with only small amounts of silica and alumina. No traces of uranium or plutonium, necessary for nuclear products, were found.
Therefore, the accusation of engaging in nuclear-related activities is a sheer nonsense, the official said.
Current annual production of the mill stands at 200,000 tonnes of iron ore and it is expected to meet the country’s iron and steel needs. The project is part of the government’s strategy for economic development through import substitution, and will contribute to the creation of jobs for Myanmar citizens through the use of both technical and human resources in the iron and steel sector.
The government emphasizes the implementation of long-term plans to enable localization in the use of necessary industrial raw materials at reasonable prices. Spreading such falsified information is intended only to hinder the economic development of the nation and create misunderstanding among the ethnic people.
Thit Taw
Trsl-ZN
