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(Photo: PTTEP)

Myint & Associates was the first private Burmese company to enter the oil and gas industry as a service contractor and is now recognized one of the top 10 companies in this booming sector of the Burmese economy.

The company provides a wide range of services, including warehouse construction and rental, logistics, maintenance, procurement, equipment rental, engineering, agency representation and general services related to oil and gas exploration and production.

Myint & Associates is currently excavating raw petroleum in Minbu, Magwe Division, and is involved in the Yadana and Yetagun gas projects.

Michael Moe Myint has several international business connections. He served as a consultant and local agent for the American-owned Baker Hughes and FMC Group, Japanese-owned Mitsui & Co Ltd, McDermott International Inc, UK-owned Bredero Price International, and Thai-owned Shinawatra International.

The company’s clients include Total, Unocal, Halliburton, Premier Oil, Petronas and Daewoo.

Michael Moe Myint proudly claims that he is one of the few businessmen in Burma who pay tax to the government (about $1 million per month) and is considered to be one of the 10 richest people in Burma.

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Ne Win Tun
Ruby Dragon Jade & Gems Co Ltd

Ne Win Tun (Illustration Harn Lay/The Irrawaddy)

Ne Win Tun, the CEO of Ruby Dragon Jade & Gems Co Ltd, is the right-hand man of Aung Kham Hti, the leader of the Pa-O National Organization (PNO) from southern Shan State. After reaching a peace agreement with the regime in 1991, the PNO set up Jade Dragon (Gems) Co Ltd, the parent company of Ruby Dragon Jade & Gems Co Ltd, and appointed Ne Win Tun to run the business.

Ne Win Tun operates gold and gem mines in Mong Hsu in Shan State, Pha Khant and Tawmaw in Kachin State, Kawlin and Khamti in Sagaing Division and Mogok in Mandalay Division.

He has also diversified into other sectors. In 2004, his Ruby Winery Factory went into operation in Nyaung Shwe in southern Shan State, with a total investment of $3 million. In 2005, he built the Dragon Cement Factory on a 728-acre site in Tigyit, Shan State, with an initial investment of about $21 million. And in March 2007, he opened the Ruby Jade Hotel Resort and Spa in Rangoon.

(Photo: Azuna Ali/The Irrawaddy)

It is widely believed that high-ranking Burmese generals are shareholders in Ruby Dragon Jade & Gems Co Ltd, the largest company of its kind in Burma. In the early 2000s, the company donated a massive 3,000-tonne slab of jade to the junta.

Ne Win Tun is regarded as one of the 10 richest people in Burma. Observers say that it is unlikely that the US Block Burmese Jade Act of 2008 will have much impact on his gem-trading business, since most of his customers are from China.

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Khin Shwe
Zaykabar Company

Khin Shwe (Illustration Harn Lay/The Irrawaddy)

A pioneer in the Burmese real estate industry, 58-year-old Khin Shwe runs Zaykabar Company, the country’s leading property developer. The company has been behind numerous high-profile projects, including the Yangon Industrial Park, the Royal Mingaladon Golf and Country Club, the Kandawgyi Nature Park and Recreation Zone, the Mya Yeik Nyo Royal Hotel, the Pyay Garden Condominium and the Karaweik Palace reception hall and restaurant on Rangoon’s Kandawgyi Lake.

As president of the Myanmar Construction Entrepreneurs Association and chairman of the Myanmar Hotelier Association, Khin Shwe has played a major role in developing and promoting Burma’s tourism industry. He has also served as chairman of the Myanmar-Japan Friendship Association, the Myanmar-Korean Friendship Association and the Myanmar Thai Development Co.