Singapore-listed petroleum explorer Interra Resources said on Thursday that a legal advisor it had appointed found that the company had not breached U.S. and E.U. sanctions in Myanmar.
The advisor’s report follows allegations from activist group Justice for Myanmar that Interra had helped supply the country’s military regime with oil and contributed to war crimes.
The company said in a statement that the risk of financial impact resulting from any potential violations of sanctions will also be minimal.
Myanmar has been in turmoil since the military overthrew the elected civilian government and jailed State Counsellor Aung San Suu Kyi on Feb. 1, 2021, triggering pro-democracy protests that morphed into a widening armed rebellion that has taken over swathes of the country.
Interra holds a participating interest of about 60 percent in Goldpetrol Joint Operating Company (GJOC), according to its website. GJOC operates two of the onshore producing oil fields in Chauk and Yenangyaung in central Myanmar.
GJOC secured the production-sharing contract for oil exploration and production with Myanma Oil and Gas Enterprise (MOGE), Myanmar’s state oil company, in 1996. It was extended for 11 years in April 2017.
In February, Interra had said production-sharing contract between its subsidiary and MOGE was extended years before the military seized power in 2021.
After the 2021 coup in Myanmar, the U.S. and the E.U. imposed sanctions on MOGE.
REUTERS
