Total in Burma : the yadana pipeline project

The gas is transported to the Myanmar border via a 36-inch (90-centimeter) pipeline (marked in red on the map) that runs from the offshore complex and comprises two sections:

			A 346-kilometer subsea section that makes landfall at Daminseik.
			A 63-kilometer onshore section that runs from Daminseik to the Thai border.

The pipeline that carries the gas from the delivery point on the border to the consumption area near Bangkok was not included in the project and was built by Thailand.

The blue line is the pipeline from the Yetagun gas field. It follows the same onshore route as the Yadana pipeline.

The onshore installations include:

			The pipeline center, or PLC, near Kanbauk, comprising processing installations and accommodation.
			A metering station on the border to measure the amount of gas delivered to PTT.

It took some time to select the gas pipeline route. Both the starting point (the Yadana field) and the probable consumers (the Ratchaburi and Wang Noi power plants in the Bangkok region) were known.

On paper, the original idea (solution 1 on the map) had been to route the pipeline closer to the Yangon region, thereby facilitating local use of some of the gas. However, this solution had two major technical drawbacks: the water along the route was very shallow (three to four meters), which made laying a subsea pipeline very difficult, and the onshore section was long. Moreover, the Three Pagodas Pass area at the proposed border crossing was a contested area in which sporadic fighting with rebel factions was known to occur.
The thinking soon turned to a southeast route (solution 2 on the map) that was proposed for a relatively peaceful and stable area, offered adequate water depths, and entailed a fairly shorter onshore section in Myanmar, all of which factors made it far more desirable than the solution originally considered.

The selection of alternate routes was initially based on examination of available maps, prepared by the British in 1940, aerial photographs and satellite images. Field surveys were carried out in late 1994 and early 1995 by a specialist team from France's Compagnie Générale de Géophysique, with the final route selected in February 1995.

The detailed route comprised a number of options. The southern route - the most direct and the least expensive - would run through undisturbed tropical forest. The median route ran along the Zimba River, meaning that the terrain was less rugged, but would also impact a sensitive ecosystem. The longer, more rugged northern route followed a track used by the region's farmers and fishermen to sell some of their produce in Thailand. This route (Northern Route on the map) was selected because in-depth studies determined that it was the most environmentally friendly, despite being more expensive.