Myanma Oil and Gas Enterprise (Burmese: မြန်မာ့ရေနံနှင့် သဘာဝဓါတ်ငွေ့လုပ်ငန်း; abbreviated MOGE) is a national oil and gas company of Myanmar. It was established in 1963. MOGE royalties and fees are estimated to generate US$1.5 billion in annual revenues, about half of the country's foreign currency reserves.[1][2] The company is a sole operator of oil and gas exploration and production, as well as domestic gas transmission through a 1,200 miles (1,900 km) onshore pipeline grid.[3][4]
MOGE discovered the Mann oil field in 1970. Peak production in 1979 was 23,000 barrels of oil per day, about three-quarters of Myanmar's total production.[6]
Since the 2021 Myanmar coup d'état, MOGE has become the largest foreign currency source for the military regime, the State Administration Council.[7] In February 2022, the European Union imposed sanctions on MOGE.[8] In January 2023, the American government sanctioned MOGE officials.[9] As of January 2023[update], neither the United States nor the United Kingdom have sanctioned MOGE.[10]
In January 2022, TotalEnergies, Chevron, and Woodside Energy announced they would withdraw from the Myanmar market, following pressure from activists who have called for companies to cut financial ties with MOGE.[11][12] TotalEnergies had operated the Yadana natural gas pipeline project since the 1990s, with a 31.24% stake in the project, while Chevron had a 28.26% stake.[11] TotalEnergies' divestment has increased MOGE's stake in the project, from 15% to 21.8%.[13] Australian-owned Woodside took a US$138 million loss from its exit.[14]
In February 2022, Japanese-owned Mitsubishi Group announced its exit.[15] In April 2022, Malaysian-owned Petronas followed suit, withdrawing from the Yetagun gas field project.[16]