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Saudi Arabia offers 15% investment in Pakistan’s Reko Diq mining venture

Saudi Arabia offers 15% investment in Pakistan’s Reko Diq mining venture
Empty trailers to house workers at the site of the gold and copper mine exploration project of Tethyan Copper Company (TCC) are seen in Reko Diq in Pakistan's province of Balochistan in this undated 2010 photo. (Reuters/File)
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Updated 14 September 2024
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Saudi Arabia offers 15% investment in Pakistan’s Reko Diq mining venture

Saudi Arabia offers 15% investment in Pakistan’s Reko Diq mining venture
  • Reko Diq in Pakistan’s southwest is considered one of the world’s largest undeveloped copper and gold resources
  • State-owned media says Pakistan expects up to $5 billion of Saudi investment in mining, agriculture by June 2025
Updated 14 September 2024
Arab News Pakistan
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ISLAMABAD: Saudi Arabia has offered a 15 percent investment in the Reko Diq copper and gold mine project in Pakistan’s southwestern Balochistan province, according to Pakistani state-owned media on Saturday.
Reko Diq is considered one of the world’s largest undeveloped copper and gold resources, primarily operated by Canada’s Barrick Gold, which holds a 50 percent stake in it.
The remaining stake is owned by three federal state-owned enterprises and the Balochistan provincial government, though Pakistan has also invited Saudi Arabia to invest in the project.
“Saudi Arabia has offered fifteen percent investment in Reko Diq Mining project,” the Radio Pakistan said in one of its reports. “The Kingdom has also offered grants to build road infrastructure around the Reko Diq project.”
“Special Investment Facilitation Council (SIFC) has approved the structure of the offer but the final decision has been left to the Cabinet Committee on Intergovernmental Transactions,” it added.
Pakistan set up the SIFC, a civil-military hybrid body, last year in June with the sole purpose of reviving the frail national economy, dented by low foreign exchange reserves, currency depreciation and record inflation.
Barrick Gold’s top official, Mark Bristow, has also acknowledged the Saudi interest in the project, saying his company would not dilute its equity.
However, he added that Barrick Gold would not oppose any decision by the Pakistan government to sell part of its stake to Saudia Arabia.
Radio Pakistan said the government in Islamabad expects up to $5 billion investment in the mining and agriculture sector by June next year.

Topics: Reko Diq

Police say gunmen open fire on vehicles in Pakistan’s restive northwest, killing at least eight

Police say gunmen open fire on vehicles in Pakistan’s restive northwest, killing at least eight
Updated 9 sec ago
AP
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Police say gunmen open fire on vehicles in Pakistan’s restive northwest, killing at least eight

Police say gunmen open fire on vehicles in Pakistan’s restive northwest, killing at least eight
  • Attack happened in Kurram, district in northwestern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province 
  • Sectarian clashes have killed dozens of people in the region in recent months
Updated 9 sec ago
AP

PESHAWAR, Pakistan: Gunmen opened fire on passenger vehicles carrying members of the Shiite minority in restive northwest Pakistan on Thursday, killing at least eight people and wounding others, police said.

The attack happened in Kurram, a district in the northwestern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province where clashes between majority Sunni Muslims and minority Shiites have killed dozens of people in recent months.

No one has claimed responsibility but Kurram has been a scene of sectarian violence in recent months, and the latest violence came a week after authorities reopened a key highway in the region after keeping it closed for weeks following deadly clashes.

Local police official Nusrat Hussain said several vehicles carrying passengers were traveling in a convoy from the city of Parachinar to Peshawar, the capital of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, when gunmen opened fire.

He said at least five passengers were in a critical condition at a hospital.

Shiite Muslims make up about 15 percent of the 240 million population of Sunni-majority Pakistan, which has a history of sectarian animosity between the two communities.

Topics: Pakistan Shiite Muslims kurram

Investment deals on the table as Belarus president to visit Pakistan next week

Investment deals on the table as Belarus president to visit Pakistan next week
Updated 20 min 4 sec ago
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Investment deals on the table as Belarus president to visit Pakistan next week

Investment deals on the table as Belarus president to visit Pakistan next week
  • Pakistan and Belarus, world’s 74th-largest economy by GDP, celebrated thirty years of diplomatic relations this year
  • Pakistan was one of the first countries to recognize Belarus after the dissolution of the Soviet Union in 1991 
Updated 20 min 4 sec ago
Fatimah Amjad

ISLAMABAD: The president of the Republic of Belarus, Aleksandr Grigorievich Lukashenko, will be in Islamabad on a three-day official visit from Monday, with several investment deals and memorandums of understanding likely to be discussed, the foreign office said on Thursday.

Pakistan has been pushing for foreign investment from allies old and new in recent months in a bid to shore up its $350 billion economy as it navigates a tough reforms agenda mandated by the International Monetary Fund (IMF).

“President of the republic of Belarus, Aleksandr Lukashenko, will undertake an official visit to Pakistan from Nov. 25-27,” the foreign office spokesperson, Mumtaz Zahra Baloch, said at a weekly press briefing. “President Lukashenko will hold extensive talks with Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and discuss the areas of bilateral cooperation,”

Pakistan and Belarus, the world’s 74th-largest economy by GDP, celebrated thirty years of the establishment of diplomatic relations this year. Pakistan was one of the first countries to recognize Belarus after the dissolution of the Soviet Union in 1991 and maintains an embassy in Minsk.

The prime minister of Belarus was in Islamabad earlier this year where he met his counterpart as well as the chief of the Pakistan army, among other key leaders. 

In September, Pakistan and Belarus discussed different options for a joint venture to establish a tractor plant in the country and reached a consensus on collaborating on a foot-and-mouth disease vaccine to protect cattle, as well as on the capacity building of agricultural engineers in machinery design.

They also agreed to enhance cooperation in the sectors of livestock and seeds, and work together on the mechanization of agriculture and on increasing market access for agricultural and livestock products. Belarus also wants to set up a veterinary medicine plant in Pakistan.

The First Pakistan-Belarus Joint Economic Commission (JEC) was held in 2015 in which the two countries agreed to initiate joint ventures in the textile, pharmaceutical and lighting solution industries and share technological expertise.

Topics: Pakistan Belarus Ties Belarus president Aleksandr Grigorievich Lukashenko Arab News Pakistan

Pakistan says 30% of its vehicles will be electric by 2030

Pakistan says 30% of its vehicles will be electric by 2030
Updated 53 min 8 sec ago
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Pakistan says 30% of its vehicles will be electric by 2030

Pakistan says 30% of its vehicles will be electric by 2030
  • Hybrid electric vehicle sales in Pakistan have more than doubled in past year
  • Global EV giant BYD Group has obtained manufacturing license in Pakistan
Updated 53 min 8 sec ago
Arab News Pakistan

ISLAMABAD: Privatization Minister Abdul Aleem Khan said on Thursday 30% of vehicles in Pakistan would be converted to electric by 2030, state media widely reported, as the South Asian country takes step to combat air pollution and other climate change effects. 

The minister was echoing the government’s New Energy Vehicle (NEV) policy released on Wednesday, which is aimed at transitioning 30 percent of all new vehicles — imported and locally manufactured — to electric power by 2030.

Hybrid electric vehicle sales in Pakistan have more than doubled in the past year. BYD Pakistan, a partnership between China’s BYD and Pakistani car group Mega Motors, said in September up to 50 percent of all vehicles bought in Pakistan by 2030 will be electrified in some form in line with global targets.

Warren Buffett-backed Chinese electric vehicle giant BYD announced its entry into Pakistan in August, making the nation of 250 million people one of its newest markets.

“Pakistan aims to convert thirty percent of its vehicles to electric by 2030,” Khan said as he addressed the “Transport and Digital Middle Corridor and Beyond” session at the ongoing UN COP29 summit in Baku.

“Significant steps are underway to support the widespread adoption of electric vehicles in Pakistan … the government is actively working on infrastructure development for EVs, including the installation of charging stations.”

Local media reported in August that standards for EV charging stations had been drafted by the power ministry, with the government considering offering them affordable electricity.

Under the new EV policy, the government has introduced subsidies of Rs50,000 for electric motorcycles and Rs200,000 for three-wheelers like rickshaws, with a total allocation of Rs4 billion. These subsidies will be distributed through auctions. So far, two companies have been granted licenses, and 31 more applications are under review.

The policy also incorporates a reduction in the policy rate from 22 to 15 percent, with financing available at a 3 percent Kibor (Karachi Interbank Offered Rate) and the government covering the financial cost. Consumers will pay monthly installments of around Rs9,000 over two years, an amount lower than their projected fuel savings.

A Credit Loss Guarantee managed by the Finance Division will ensure no financial burden on the Ministry of Industries or consumers.

Additional initiatives include offering free electric bikes or scooters to 120 high-achieving students and reducing duties on EV components to encourage local manufacturing. The government is also set to establish a New Energy Fund and a New Energy Vehicle Center to support these measures.

BYD Pakistan is collaborating with two oil marketing companies to establish a charging infrastructure network and aims to establish 20 to 30 charging stations within the initial phases concurrent with the rollout of its cars.

BYD Pakistan will initially sell fully assembled vehicles, which are subject to higher import charges than vehicles shipped in parts and assembled locally. Dewan Motors is also set to launch its EVs under the completely knocked down (CKD) license.

Topics: EV Pakistan

Pakistan voices ‘deep regret’ as US vetoes UN Security Council resolution on Gaza ceasefire

Pakistan voices ‘deep regret’ as US vetoes UN Security Council resolution on Gaza ceasefire
Updated 21 November 2024
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Pakistan voices ‘deep regret’ as US vetoes UN Security Council resolution on Gaza ceasefire

Pakistan voices ‘deep regret’ as US vetoes UN Security Council resolution on Gaza ceasefire
  • 15-member UN council voted on a resolution put forward by 10 non-permanent members 
  • Only US voted against, using its veto as permanent council member to block resolution
Updated 21 November 2024
Arab News Pakistan

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan on Thursday expressed “deep regret” over the United States vetoing a UN Security Council resolution for a ceasefire in Gaza, which has drawn criticism of the Biden administration for once again blocking international action aimed at halting Israel’s war in the besieged enclave. 

The 15-member council voted on a resolution put forward by 10 non-permanent members that called for an “immediate, unconditional and permanent ceasefire” in the 13-month conflict and separately demanded the release of hostages. Only the US voted against it, using its veto as a permanent council member to block the resolution.

“We deeply regret that even now a resolution calling for an immediate and unconditional ceasefire has been vetoed by the sole negative vote of a permanent member of the Council,” Pakistan’s Permanent Representative to the UN, Munir Akram, told the state APP news agency. 

Robert Wood, deputy US ambassador to the UN, said Washington had made clear it would only support a resolution that explicitly called for the immediate release of hostages as part of a ceasefire.

“A durable end to the war must come with the release of the hostages. These two urgent goals are inextricably linked. This resolution abandoned that necessity, and for that reason, the United States could not support it,” he said.

Wood said the US had sought compromise, but the text of the proposed resolution would have sent a “dangerous message” to Hamas that “there’s no need to come back to the negotiating table.”

Israel’s campaign in Gaza has killed nearly 44,000 people and displaced nearly all of the enclave’s population at least once. It was launched in response to an attack by Hamas fighters who killed 1,200 people and captured more than 250 hostages in Israel on Oct. 7, 2023.

With inputs from Reuters

Topics: Pakistan UN US Gaza ceasefire Arab News Pakistan

Gulf countries have identified $19 billion investment portfolio for Pakistan — planning minister

Gulf countries have identified $19 billion investment portfolio for Pakistan — planning minister
Updated 21 November 2024
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Gulf countries have identified $19 billion investment portfolio for Pakistan — planning minister

Gulf countries have identified $19 billion investment portfolio for Pakistan — planning minister
  • Pakistan has been pushing for foreign investment in recent months in a bid to shore up its $350 billion economy
  • Rollovers, loans from Saudi Arabia, UAE, China have helped Pakistan meet external financing needs in the past
Updated 21 November 2024
Fatimah Amjad

ISLAMABAD: Planning Minister Ahsan Iqbal said on Thursday Gulf nations like Saudi Arabia and the UAE, among others, had identified a $19 billion investment portfolio for Pakistan, while China was now entering phase two of a multi-billion-dollar economic corridor project. 

Pakistan has been pushing for foreign investment in recent months in a bid to shore up its $350 billion economy as it navigates a tough reforms agenda mandated by the International Monetary Fund (IMF).

“The world, which was viewing Pakistan as a failed economy, is once more looking at Pakistan with hope,” Iqbal said as he addressed a ceremony in Islamabad. 

“China is extending its hand in the form of phase two of CPEC [China-Pakistan Economic Corridor]. Our friendly nations, Gulf countries, which include Saudi Arabia, UAE, Kuwait, Qatar, Azerbaijan, they have together identified a $19 billion portfolio under which they can invest in Pakistan. So, all these opportunities are once again knocking at our door.”

Rollovers or disbursements on loans from Pakistan’s long-time allies Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and China, in addition to financing from the IMF, have helped Pakistan meet its external financing needs in the past.

Last month, Pakistan and Saudi Arabia signed investment agreements worth $2.8 billion while Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman has pledged to expedite a $5 billion investment portfolio for Islamabad.

The UAE committed this May it would invest $10 billion in promising economic sectors. Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif also said this week Azerbaijan had pledged to invest $3 billion in multiple sectors of Pakistan’s economy. 

Pakistan and the IMF signed a $7 billion loan program in September. 

Pakistan’s economy has struggled for decades with boom-and-bust cycles, needing 23 IMF bailouts since 1958.

Topics: Pakistan Saudi investment in Pakistan

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