[ad_1]
Islamabad [Pakistan]Dec. 25 (ANI): Chinese companies in Pakistan opt for ‘slow down’ policy amid delays in payments to IPPs, rising exchange rates and ‘unhelpful actions of National Electricity Regulatory Authority (Nepra) and its companies’ , to report business records.
Chinese Ambassador to Pakistan Nong Rong shared the information when he met with Special Assistant to the Prime Minister on Coordination Syed Tariq Fatemi.
Read also | Dubai Lottery Winner: Indian driver Ajay Ogula of UAE wins over Rs 33 crore in Easy6 Emirates Draw.
In a letter to his cabinet colleagues, Fatemi informed that as a follow-up to the Inter-Ministerial Meeting (IMM) chaired by the Minister of Planning, Development and Special Initiatives on Friday, December 16, 2022, the Chinese Ambassador to Pakistan, Business Recorder reported. Visited him and discussed different issues.
Tariq Fatemi told the ambassador that the Pakistani authorities have taken security measures in the Rashakai Special Economic Zone to ensure foolproof security for Chinese citizens.
Read also | Afghanistan: Taliban bans women from working for domestic and foreign NGOs.
According to the Business Record, the measures are not intended to impede any development process, but rather to ensure the safety of Chinese workers.
He stressed that relevant authorities in Pakistan have taken appropriate measures to protect projects donated by China from anti-dumping duties. If they continue to face any issues, they may be brought to the attention of the Planning Minister.
Fatemi also conveyed to the ambassador that the Pakistani embassy in Beijing had been instructed to coordinate with China on the establishment of an energy revolving account, the Business Record reported.
In response, the Chinese ambassador acknowledged that Chinese companies remained reluctant to make progress due to delays in payments to the IPP, rising exchange rates and Nepra’s “unbeneficial behavior toward Chinese companies,” Business Recorder reported.
Multiple projects under the CPEC are facing delays due to unresolved issues as the Pakistani government is unable to address looming issues that could deepen distrust among Chinese investors.
CPEC’s multibillion-dollar economic cooperation has failed to complete projects over the past three years, and has failed to maintain the momentum to deliver a series of power plants and other infrastructure projects in the first phase of CPEC implementation, Dawn reported.
During a major meeting to discuss China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) projects, Pakistan announced long-delayed five key power and railway projects with China, according to media reports.
Ahsan Iqbal, Pakistan’s planning minister, expressed concern that any further delay would collapse the country’s rail system within a year and delay 3,100 megawatts of power generation, the Express Tribune reported.
The five projects Islamabad is asking China to expedite work on include – the $10 billion Mainline-I railway project, the $1.2 billion Karachi Circular Railway project, the $1.6 billion Azad Pattan hydropower project, the $2.5 billion Kohala power project and the USD The $3 billion Thar Block-I coal project was prioritized, the Tribune reported, citing officials who attended the meeting.
At least 28 Chinese projects worth $18.8 billion have been completed, but there are still plans for $34 billion to be completed.
It is worth mentioning that since China won the ML-I project of the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor, Pakistan Railway has not invested in the project. Discussions on issues faced by Chinese IPPs in CPEC projects were also key takeaways from the meeting. (Arnie)
(This is an unedited and auto-generated story from a Syndicated News feed, the content body may not have been modified or edited by LatestLY staff)
[ad_2]
Source link
