Contributor - Asia

Jennifer Meszaros

A new report by Amnesty International, Global Witness, and Burma Campaign UK into the continued sale of aviation fuel to Myanmar’s military has exposed more firms involved in the country’s supply chain. This includes&nbsp;insurance, shipping, and financial services firms, exemplifying claims that a vast web of foreign and multinational companies are allegedly enabling war crimes in the Southeast Asian state.&nbsp;
The organization's statements follow&nbsp;a 152-page Amnesty investigation report—“Deadly Cargo,” released in November—that asserts civil aviation fuel was diverted for military use.&nbsp;“We have traced new shipments of aviation fuel that have likely ended up in the hands of Myanmar’s military, which has consistently conducted unlawful air strikes. These attacks regularly kill civilians, including children, yet planes can only take off if they have fuel,” said Montse Ferrer, Amnesty International’s researcher and advisor on business and human rights.
Amnesty's latest findings reveal oil tanker Prime V delivered a shipment of jet-A1 in&nbsp;December, sailing from India’s Port of Sikka to the former Puma Energy Aviation Sun (PEAS) terminal located at the port of Thilawa in Yangon, Myanmar.&nbsp;The report names Greek shipping company&nbsp;Sea Trade Marine as the beneficial owner of Prime V and India’s Reliance Industries as the owner of the Sikka terminal. The Japan P&amp;I Club served as the protection and indemnity insurer. “There is no suggestion that the Prime V broke applicable laws in this delivery,” Amnesty added.
In a separate transaction in October, tanker Big Sea 104 carried 12,592 tonnes of jet-A1 from Thailand’s Bangchak Oil Refinery to Thilawa. The report lists Thai company Prima Marine as the beneficial owner of Big Sea 104 and Luxembourg-based The Shipowners’ P&amp;I Club as the insurer. The refinery is owned by the publicly listed Bangchak Corp.&nbsp;
Only Japan P&amp;I Club responded to Amnesty’s request for comments, saying it operates on a not-for-profit basis for its shipowner members, providing third-party liability protection.&nbsp;“Insurance cover may terminate if a vessel is involved in illegal activity,” the insurer was quoted as saying.&nbsp;
At the time of both deliveries, fuel storage at Thilawa port was controlled by PEAS, a wholly owned subsidiary of Puma Energy—a Swiss multinational oil company, majority-owned by Singapore-based Swiss commodity trader Trafigura.
In October, Puma Energy announced its withdrawal from Myanmar after selling its assets in PEAS and its minority stake in National Energy Puma Aviation Services (NEPAS)—a leading military fuel supplier and refueling provider for 11 domestic airports. That buyer was Shoon Energy, Amnesty said, formerly known as Asia Sun Aviation, a Singapore-registered company. The sale was finalized in December.&nbsp;That&nbsp;same month, Canada imposed sanctions against Puma Energy's parent company, the Asia Sun Group for supplying jet-A1&nbsp;to the military. The move was followed by a total aviation fuel ban to Myanmar in February.&nbsp;
Last month, the UK and the EU joined Canada and imposed sanctions against the Asia Sun Group and its associates and entities.&nbsp;“Ahead of these sanctions, however, the Asia Sun conglomerate changed several of its companies’ names to Shoon Energy,” Amnesty International said.&nbsp;Through Shoon Energy, the Asia Sun Group now controls Thilawa’s fuel terminal—Myanmar’s main entry point for jet-A1, and “jointly, with military-controlled Myanmar Petroleum Products Enterprise, the import and distribution of aviation fuel across the country.
“It is troubling that the Swiss-registered multinational fuel company Puma Energy, which committed to withdraw from Myanmar in October 2022, decided to sell its aviation fuel assets to a Myanmar business group that has imported fuel for the military,” Ferrer said.
Amnesty’s November investigation alleged that “civilian and military use of aviation fuel is inextricably linked,” highlighting the dual use of Nay Pyi Taw International Airport and Mandalay International Airport, the absence of separate airport fuel storage facilities, the relationship between NEPAS and the junta, and the role of Mann refinery, which stores fuel for air bases linked to war crimes.
Meanwhile, the report names several global companies involved in Myanmar’s aviation fuel supply chain—from vessel operators and port owners to oil companies and shipping agents—between February 2021 and August 2022.
Among the companies are Chevron, ExxonMobil, Korean shipping company Pan Ocean, Netherlands-based storage company Vopak, Norwegian shipping company Wilhelmsen, Russia’s Rosneft, the Singapore Petroleum Co. (wholly owned by PetroChina), and Thai Oil. Also named were five&nbsp;UK-based affiliated P&amp;I clubs, including the UK Mutual Steam Ship Assurance Association (Bermuda), the Britannia Steam Ship Insurance Association, and the North of England P&amp;I Association.
Out of the 24 companies contacted, 13 responded to Amnesty International, with some entities saying the fuel was delivered to domestic airlines.&nbsp;Following Amnesty’s findings, Wilhelmsen, Korean Pan Ocean, and Thai Oil said they would cease aviation fuel operations to Myanmar.
In light of last week’s report, Amnesty International, Global Witness, and a number of other groups are reiterating calls to suspend the supply of aviation fuel until additional safeguards are implemented. “The international community has the tools in place to enact these restrictions. We should do what is in our power to reduce the Myanmar military’s capacity for terrorizing civilians,” concluded Global Witness senior investigator Hanna Hindstrom.

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