19-08-08 Myanmar's natural gas exports rose by about 25 % to $ 2.5 bn in the fiscal year ending in March, official statistics showed.
Sales were up from $ 2.05 bn in the previous fiscal year, according to data from the National Planning and Economic Development Ministry. Myanmar's offshore natural gasfields have become an important source of energy for neighbouring Thailand, which gets about 20 % of its natural gas from the military-ruled country.

Thailand is now vying with other Asian nations, including China and India, to tap into more of Myanmar's offshore reserves, despite sanctions on the ruling junta imposed by Western countries.
The United States and the European Union have tightened sanctions on the regime following the military's deadly suppression of pro-democracy protests led by Buddhist monks last September.