Publish What You Pay’s Freedom of Information (FoI) requests show Australia’s Future Fund has investments of $123 million in international oil and gas companies financing the Myanmar military through revenue payments and business partnerships.

This includes Chevron, TotalEnergies, PTT Public Company Ltd (Thailand), GAIL Ltd and ONGC Limited (India) that are in joint ventures with, and make payments to, the military controlled Myanma Oil and Gas Enterprise (MOGE).

These investments raise significant financial and material risks for the Future Fund and show that the current bill before the parliament that seeks to stop FOI request should be opposed.

Clancy Moore, Australian director of the transparency coalition, Publish What You Pay said:

“The Future Fund invests money on behalf of all Australians so investments must meet the highest standards of transparency and accountability. Australians have a right to know which companies the Fund is investing our money in.”

“From our Freedom of Information requests, we now know that the Future Fund is investing in foreign oil and gas companies doing business with the Myanmar military. The Future Fund must urge these companies to stop financing the corrupt and murderous military regime.”

“We urge the Future Fund and other investors to urgently raise these issues with these companies and request they divest from any business relationships with, and rule out making any financial payments to Myanmar military, their business and state-owned enterprises such as MOGE.”  

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TotalEnergies, Chevron, GAIL, ONGC and PTT and their subsidiaries, are in partnership with MOGE and providing revenue payments to the military.

PTT is also allegedly paying $1.34 million rent annually to the military owned company, Myanmar Economic Conglomerate (MEC), for land seized from farmers. The UN has stated that MEC provides funding directly to the military and finances their operations.

Future Fund investments in oil and gas companies in Myanmar, October and May 2021

• TotalEnergies - $41,049,074.07

• Chevron Corporation - $22,728,708

• GAIL (India) Ltd - $3,569,689

• Oil and Natural Gas Corporation Limited Subsidiaries of Oil and Natural Gas Corporation Limited - $7,616,713

• Subsidiaries of Oil and Natural Gas Corporation Limited - $4,276,174

• PTT Public Company Limited - $24,789,081

• Subsidiaries of PTT Public Company Limited - $18,896,978

• Response from the Future Fund to our FOI request in May is here and FOI request in October is here.

• Publish What You Pay correspondence to Future Fund is here.

• Response from the Future Fund is here.