ISLAMABAD   -   China and Pakistan on Friday reiterated to work on CPEC portfolio ML-I project, two hydro projects, having cumulative capacity of 1800 MW, and further progress/announcement is expected on these projects during the Prime Minister visit to China.

Talking to media persons after the meeting of 13th Joint Cooperation Committee of CPEC here, Ahsan Iqbal, Federal Minister for Planning, Development and Special Initiative, said that in the 13th JCC, it was reiterated to work on developing projects. These projects include Azad Patan project, and Kohala project. These projects will provide 1800 MW of hydel energy to Pakistan. Concrete announcements regarding these projects are expected during the visit of the Prime Minister of Pakistan to China. Besides, in the light of the economic situation of Pakistan, the ML-1 project of CPEC was revised. Ahsan Iqbal has the honour of having presided over 10 out of 13 JCC meetings.

Ahsan Iqbal said that CPEC is a milestone of friendship between Pakistan and China. CPEC has provided this friendship with a strong foundation for economic and economic cooperation. From 2013 to 2018, 25 billion dollars were invested in Pakistan under CPEC. He said that the journey of CPEC slowed down after 2018 due to change of government.

Ahsan Iqbal said that the Deputy Prime Minister of China visited Pakistan on the completion of 10 years of CPEC. On the occasion, he identified 5 new corridors for Phase 2 of CPEC. These include Growth Corridor, Economic Development Projects Corridor, Innovation Corridor, Green Corridor, and Regional Connectivity Corridor. All these five corridors are in line with Pakistan’s economic development framework, the Five Es and Vision 2025, for which Pakistan strives.

In the 13th JCC, it was reiterated to work on developing projects. These projects include Azad Patan project, and Kohala project. These projects will provide 1800 MW of hydel energy to Pakistan. Concrete announcements regarding these projects are expected during the visit of the Prime Minister of Pakistan to China. Besides, in the light of the economic situation of Pakistan, the ML1 project of CPEC was revised. The cost of the project has been reduced from $10 billion to $6.8 billion. The ML-1 project will be constructed in phases. Its purpose is to enable implementation in accordance with the economic laws of Pakistan. The minister was asked if length of ML-1 had been reduced after its cost was lowered from $10 billion to $6.8 billion. The minister answered that the basic infrastructural length is same but time/speed for completion will be increased as the project will be materialised in multiple phases.

Replying to a query on overdue payment to the Chinese IPPs, the minister said that due payments will be cleared at the earliest and instructions had already been given to relevant departments. The total dues of the Chinese CPEC IPPs is around Rs500 billion, he added. 

To another query that how much loss CPEC projects had suffered during PTI tenure, the minister maintained that the progress on CPEC projects had regressed by at least 10 years.

Furthermore, the minister said that the decision to use local coal instead of imported coal will help promote the vision of incorporating green economy. 300 Megawatt Gwadar coal will fulfil local power demand along the Makran coastal region.

He further shared that National Energy Administration of China will visit Pakistan to prepare recommendations to reduce power losses during project construction phases. They will also make solutions to convert regular energy efficiently into green energy.

In response to another question inquiring how government will fund PSDPs when there is limited financial capacity, he said that Public Private Partnerships will be part of next year’s development budget.

He also said that Pakistan’s economic progress is now dependent on consistent increase in agricultural and industrial exports. Pakistan has already started exporting wheat, livestock, beef and fruits to China.

The minister assured that no progress on any CPEC project will be halted by present government. He also stressed that strict security measures have been taken to protect all labourers in collaboration with Interior ministry.

While summarising priority areas under CPEC phase-II, Ahsan Iqbal said that the new phase will focus on advancement of agriculture, science and technology, and IT. As a result of 13th JCC, two new working groups had been added.

The minister also stressed that the potential of mineral resources of Balochistan will be explored on priority, adding that the government had revived Reko Diq project. During this JCC, both sides agreed on materialising Saudi Arabia and China’s investments in mining sector. Citing development of Panjkot-Mashkhel mineral corridor as a significant proposal during this JCC, he expressed confidence in Balochistan becoming the mining capital of Pakistan.