Power shortage somehow forces factories to potential shut down and workers into migration
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Hsu/ Yoon (NP News) - May 30
Factory owners from the industrial zones has reported the potential suspensions of factory functions due to limited electricity. Only two hours of power per day makes it difficult to keep their operations running, they said.
Authorities started a dramatic reduce of power supply to the industrial zones from four hours per day to two hours per day since recently which put factories at risk of shutting down.
The Shwe Pauk Kan textile factory owner told The NP News that electricity is only available in industrial zones from 5 am to 7 am, leaving them with just two unusable hours per day. This limited timeframe, outside of standard working hours (from 8 am to 5 pm), forces factories to rely on expensive generators which they can no longer afford. The businessman informed that all factories face similar challenges and may be forced to shut down if the situation persists.
At present, electricity shortages are forcing factories to rely almost entirely on the generators, incurring staggering monthly fuel costs ranging from 30 to 70 million kyats.
Soaring fuel costs for generators has forced the factory owners to cut overtime pay, prompting some workers to consider seeking employment in abroad.
He continued saying "For the textile factories, we have to pay overtime wages for an extra two hours from 5 pm to 7 pm, from which the workers earn more than their wages. However, since we have to run on generators, we cannot afford to pay those overtime wages. As a result, their income will be reduced by about 60,000 kyats. We simply cannot pay it. The primary group who will be impacted rather than others will be the factory workers, who may then consider leaving the country to work as migrant laborers. They might use underground channels to go to Thailand, becoming migrant workers in the Thai textile industry, or they might end up in China."
As a result, textile production is steadily declining and leading to a drop in exports which decrease in foreign currency income.
Factories owners also reviewed that these power shortages are also raising concerns among foreign investors in Myanmar. If conditions worsen, these investors may withdraw their foreign investment.
There are 29 industrial zones in Yangon including the CMP textile sector. The report also states that the factories in industrial zones in Yangon are also encountering a growing shortage of skilled workers due to worker emigration.