"We're working with Drewry who are helping us filter the bids over the next few months," MIP chief financial officer Chris O'Connor told London's Loadstar.
The search for a global operator is part of a wider strategy to modernise.
After two years of dramatic volume growth, up 32 per cent year on year in 2015 and only to leap another 40 per cent in 2016, MIP now plans to add 60 metres to its 750-metre quay to dock five feeders simultaneously. It also plans to develop 30 acres of backup land and a new 200 to 400-metre quay.
Myanmar has enjoyed 7-8 per cent GDP growth following the lifting of sanctions in 2012, but container service is limited to feeder calls. Vessels of around 1,000 TEU ply mostly between Bangladesh, Singapore, Malaysia, Thailand, but increasingly, China.
The nine-metre draft of the Yangon River prevents larger vessels reaching the inner-city terminals. Downriver, the port at Thilawa Special Economic Zone is slightly deeper, but a lack of connectivity means it is under-used.
Said Mr O'Connor: "The challenge is that between Yangon and Thilawa, you've got a two-lane highway and a bridge, which needs massive refurbishment or replacing. If you're a shipping line, generally people want their box in the city because you're closer to the industrial hubs."