Sumitomo Corporation to takeover railway station upgrades

Sumitomo Corporation to takeover railway station upgrades
Building of Yangon Railway Station (Photo-Kyi Naing)
Building of Yangon Railway Station (Photo-Kyi Naing)
Published 17 September 2019
Shun Le Win

Japanese conglomerate Sumitomo Corporation will continue to develop the upgrading process of Yangon railway station project after the Sino Great Wall Company from China, which succeeded the tender to upgrade the railway station project, became bankrupt, said Ba Myint, Managing Director of the Myanma Railways (MR).

Singapore listed Oxley Holdings, which is a joint-ventured company of Min Dhama Company from Myanmar and Chinese firm Sino Great Wall Company, succeeded the tender to upgrade the project in February 2018.

“The Chinese firm bankrupted from the China-US trade war and the firm stood at No.4 in China. The Japanese firm replaced the Chinese firm and the registration process will be finished at the end of this year,” said the managing director.

If the project is finished, the MR will earn US$4 million monthly and the amount will be enough to buy more railway engines required for the MR, he added.

The Oxley Holdings submitted the project model to the MR in 2014 and the original terms and design of the project will remain unchanged for the Japanese firm, said Aung Thu Latt, General Manager of the MR.

“We seek advice from international consultancies to replace the Chinese firm,” he said.

The project was initially planned to be finalized within eight-year time after the MR and the Oxley Holdings sign treaty in 2020.

The project is about 63.5 acres in space and 1.09 million square meters of floor space will be developed.

The company will build hotels and condos at a place between Bogyoke Aung San Road in south, Bo Min Yaung Road in north, Sule Pagoda Road in west and Theinphyu Road in east. A new train station will be built next to the old train station in the middle of new buildings.