Power outages said to fuel rising charcoal demand 

05 Jan 2022

DMG Newsroom
5 January 2022, Sittwe 

Charcoal demand is reportedly rising due to frequent power outages in several Arakan State townships. 

U Kyaw Thar Sein, a charcoal wholesale business owner in the Arakan State capital Sittwe, told DMG that daily power outages have led to an increase in the purchase and sale of charcoal. 

“If electricity is fully provided, we will not be able to sell that much,” U Kyaw Thar Sein said. 

“The power supply is cut off at cooking time now. There is a power outage not only in the morning but also in the evening. That situation brings about more people in the town buying charcoal,” he added. 

Charcoal sometimes cannot arrive in time to meet the demand as the number of customers is increasing, and the price of charcoal has risen from K6,000 per bag to K6,500 or K7,000, charcoal shops said. 

As the price of charcoal rises, snack vendors who use charcoal to make snacks are facing financial difficulties. 

“The price of charcoal rises now and I am facing difficulty to get the same profit as in the past,” an elderly woman who is a resident of Mingan ward in Sittwe told DMG. 

Daw Aye Than Shwe, a restaurant owner in Sittwe’s Bawlonekwin ward, said restaurant owners are also struggling with rising coal prices as a consequence of the capital’s frequent power outages. 

“As charcoal prices rise, the cost becomes very high. I have a restaurant, so I have to cook different kinds of curries. Therefore, I use both electric stoves and a charcoal stove. Now there is no electricity and charcoal prices are rising and I am facing difficulty doing my business,” Daw Aye Than Shwe told DMG. 

Power plant officials told journalists that power outages are due to declining power generation nationally and high public electricity consumption.