Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif said on Tuesday that if Pakistan managed to reap their mineral reserves that valued the “billion dollars”, it could allow the country to dismiss global financial institutions such as the International Monetary Fund (IMF), while pronouncing their speech in the Pakistan 2025 mineral investment forum (PMIF25).
The two -day forum, organized by Pakistan, began at the Jinnah Convention Center in Islamabad. The country plans to present a unified framework to promote mining and mineral investment opportunities in four provinces, Azad Cashmira and Gilgit-Baltistan in the high-level event attended by around 300 foreign delegates.
The PMIF25 will serve as a main platform for world stakeholders to explore investment opportunities in the Pakistan emerging mineral sector and unlock the country’s vast mineral potential.
Prime Minister Shehbaz highlighted the mining potential throughout the country and said: “We have to ensure that any permit for possible investors in the future … We will not allow raw materials to be sent from Pakistan.
He added: “As of today, there must be an integrated policy where you [investors] The raw material of mine, has the downstream industry, makes them finished products and then exports. ”
“Such agreements will imply that investors will bring technology and transfer it to Pakistan for a period of time,” he said.
He continued: “This will be the cardinal principle of our association. In the future, you [investors] They are welcome to these mines throughout Pakistan, but there must be an association that provides benefits to both partners. “
Speaking about the country’s natural resources, he said: “This is not a secret. In the public domain, these deposits are valued billions of dollars. If we can reap these great assets … Pakistan would say goodbye to institutions such as the IMF … we can get rid of the mountain of loans and sums provided with money that cost us a fortune.”
He also urged federal and provincial governments, institutions and the military to work together saying: “If we are able to put together our performance … we can put the corner in a very short time.”
Opening observations of deputy PM Dar
VicePrimer Minister Ishaq Dar said in his opening comments that Pakistan was strategically positioned to arise as a world mining power, state media Pakistan radio reported.
He stressed that Pakistan was the home of monumental reserves such as Reko Diq. The country also houses vast resources of rare earth elements, industrial minerals, non -metallic and precious stones, including Peridote and Emerald, he added.
The PM deputy said: “With this great without exploiting mineral potential, Pakistan’s resource corridor is ready to remodel global supply chains and attract direct foreign investments.”
Giving said that the Government has prioritized the strategic development of the mining sector through progressive policies and investor -centered initiatives, establishing the bases of a robust ecosystem that offers value for all interested parties.
In addition, he declared: “This investment forum provides a unique platform for interested parties, partners and friendly countries to explore the new perspectives and build mutually beneficial associations.”
Speaking in the discussion session, the Minister of Commerce, Jam Kamal, emphasized that Pakistan is the destination of mineral investment. He said: “Our resources are potentially so high that they will definitely attract a lot of investment and interest of local and foreign companies.”
Mineralization ‘significant’ golden copper found in chagai
Separately, the National Resources Limited (NRL) said it has discovered a significant mineralization of golden copper in the district of Chagai in Baluchistan.
This was announced by the president of NRL, Muhammad Ali Tabba, also executive director of Lucky Cement, during a address in today’s PMIF, according to a press release from the company.
NRL, the statement said, was a “private property of 100 percent Pakistani and a subsidiary of Fatima Fertilizer, Liberty Mills Limited and Lucky Cement”. He received an exploration lease for minerals in Chagai in October 2023.
According to NRL, the license area of 500 square kilometers “contained two porphyed perspectives known with a strong exploration potential.” He added that he had identified 18 new perspectives for 15 months, one of which was “Tang Kaur” and had “progressed rapidly to an advanced drilling stage.”
NRL has “completed 13 diamond drilling holes (3,517 meters), all of which crossed a significant alteration of porphyry style, quartz and storage veins sets, and storage, and sulphide mineralization,” according to the press release citing tabba.
Tabba declared that advanced drilling in Tang Kaur was scheduled for May 2025, which led to a technical report of internationally recognized consultants, which are already monitoring the project, at the end of the year. This would be followed by three or four years of “detailed exploration, culminating in viability studies, while the exploration of the other perspectives and leases continues.”
The NRL also said that he had acquired a leadership exploration license adjacent to a well -known deposit, where a feasibility study with banking has already been carried out.
The firm also stressed that its current local employment relationship was “above 90 percent”, since it considered “indigenous populations as key stakeholders and actively support social development.”
NRL said he was working with the Baluchistan government and the Special Investment Facilitation Council (SIFC) to ensure “two additional golden copper exploration licenses in Chagai backed by a dedicated exploration fund of $ 100 million.” He added that a memorandum of understanding with OGDCL had also been acquired to work in newly acquired leases together.
