China-invested copper mine in Myanmar set to resume after election-period shutdown

A major Chinese-backed copper mining project in Sagaing Region’s Salingyi Township is preparing to resume operations after a months-long suspension during the junta’s controversial elections, according to local residents and workers. The project, run by Wanbao Mining—a subsidiary of China’s state-owned arms manufacturer NORINCO—was halted for about three months starting in early December, officially due to fuel shortages needed to run mining machinery. Residents and workers, however, say the shutdown was widely believed to be intended to avoid attacks by resistance forces during the month-long election period that ended in late January. Workers began returning to the site on Sunday, sources said. “They went back on March 1 after supervisors called and told them to report to work,” said an employee who asked not to be identified. During the shutdown, around 100 soldiers were stationed at a checkpoint near the mining compound. Residents say troops have carried out patrols in nearby villages since operations resumed. Soldiers at a checkpoint along the Monywa–Yinmabin road near the project have also been extorting money from travellers, according to residents. “They collect money from vehicles going to Monywa to buy goods and from those returning from the market. They inspect the goods and demand payment,” one resident said. “People travelling through that area are constantly anxious.” The copper project had previously shut down after the 2021 military coup, when many workers joined the Civil Disobedience Movement (CDM), a nationwide strike by civil servants opposing the military coup. Local resistance groups have repeatedly called for the suspension of the project, which they say is a major source of revenue for the military. However, worsening economic conditions have pushed some CDM participants to return to work in recent years. The number of workers who have returned since the boycott is unclear, though sources say the project had already begun gradually restoring operations from mid-2024 and was running at nearly full capacity by the end of the year. Since work at the mine resumed, resistance forces have repeatedly launched artillery attacks on the mining compound, damaging several buildings. In October of last year, the military reinforced security by deploying additional troops from the Northwestern Regional Military Command in nearby Monywa and conducting raids on surrounding villages. In February, the Salingyi Township People’s Administration Team under the National Unity Government publicly named 10 senior managers working at Chinese-run copper projects and declared them traitors who would face action. Despite the announcement, residents say there has been little change on the ground. The junta has intensified its military operations across Sagaing Region in recent weeks following the defection of Bo Nagar, leader of the Burma National Revolution Army resistance group based in Pale Township, west of Salingyi. The copper projects—jointly operated by Wanbao Mining and the Myanmar Economic Holdings Limited, a military-owned conglomerate—generate millions of dollars in revenue for the junta each year. According to a 2021 report by the Australia-based transparency group Publish What You Pay, the Letpadaung copper mine operated by Myanmar Wanbao has generated US$417 million for the regime.

China-invested copper mine in Myanmar set to resume after election-period shutdown

Operations are restarting despite resistance attacks and an intensification of military operations near the site

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