Chinese company keen to invest in renewable energy projects

ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Muhammad Shehbaz Sharif has said that the deepening China-Pakistan economic cooperation is critical to Pakistan’s socio-economic uplift.

The prime minister expressed these views while talking to a high-powered delegation of Chinese state-owned company NORINCO that called on him in Islamabad here on Thursday. The delegation was led by vice-president NORINCO International, Wang Xiaobing and CEO NORINCO International (Pakistan), Li Chen.

Federal ministers Khawaja Saad Rafique, Syed Naveed Qamar, Chaudhary Salik Hussain, Adviser to PM Ahad Cheema, SAPMs Syed Tariq Fatemi, Mohammad Jahanzeb Khan, Zafar-Ud-Din Mahmood and officials from concerned ministries were also present in the meeting.

The prime minister highlighted the significance of CPEC as transformational project for the mutual benefit and development of both the friendly countries. He invited the Chinese companies to invest in the huge potential of renewable energy, particularly in the solar power in Pakistan. The prime minister also appreciated the company for its role in the Lahore Orange Line Metro Train project which, he said, is facilitating hundreds of thousands of commuters in Lahore on a daily basis. He recalled that it was for the first time that open bidding took place in a G2G project i.e. Lahore Orange Line.

He stated that further negotiations were held with the lowest bidder, leading to

savings of $600 million, adding that it was certainly a milestone in the development history of Pakistan.

The delegation praised Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif for his untiring efforts to steer Pakistan out of the current economic crisis. It noted that PM Shehbaz is a great friend of China whose business-friendly policies have deepened economic cooperation and facilitated foreign direct investment in the country.

The NORINCO delegation showed keen interest in investing in the wide spectrum of renewable energy projects in Pakistan, especially in the wind corridor in Thatta whereby a 100MW wind power project was proposed. Investment in fiber optic along the railway lines, copper and iron ore mining at proven reserves, and infrastructure development in the large cities of the country were among the key investment opportunities highlighted by the company as potential venues for investment.

Prime Minister Shehbaz said that Pakistan is open to investment and that his government is taking steps to remove all impediments for further facilitation of investors. The prime minister also thanked the Chinese President Xi Jinping and Premier Li Keqiang for their consistent and unwavering support to Pakistan, particularly in the current economic situation.