Firm Advises SPV in Multibillion-Dollar Dawei SEZ Shareholders Agreement

Hunton & Williams LLP is advising Dawei SEZ Development Co, a special purpose vehicle jointly established by Thailand and Myanmar, in a multibillion-dollar shareholders agreement with Japan. The deal involves development of a deep-sea port with a 250-million-ton cargo capacity on the north bank of the Dawei River in Myanmar and the creation of one of Southeast Asia’s largest special economic zones (SEZ) .

Construction of the project’s first phase will cost an estimated $1.7 billion and include an approximate 17-square-mile industrial estate and an 86-mile, two-lane road between the SEZ in Myanmar’s Tanintharyi region and the Phunumron checkpoint in Kanchanaburi, Thailand.

Japan became a full partner with Thailand and Myanmar in the Dawei development project on December 14, after the shareholders agreement was signed by the Japan Bank for International Cooperation, Thailand’s Neighbouring Countries Economic Development Cooperation Agency, and Myanmar’s National Planning and Economic Development Ministry.

The Bangkok-based Hunton & Williams team advising Dawei SEZ Development Co is led by Manida Zinmerman and includes Tanagorn Thimasarn and other lawyers.

Hunton & Williams represents financial institutions, multinational corporations, governments, agencies and investors in transactions and investments within and across Asia-Pacific jurisdictions with particularly deep experience in the energy, infrastructure, manufacturing, technology, telecommunications, banking and finance industries.