The Pakistani government has decided to dissolve the CPEC Authority on the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor, for which new Planning Minister Ahsan Iqbal has issued instructions.
According to Pakistani media, the government has decided to shut down the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor Authority and declare it inactive. In this regard, Planning Minister Ahsan Iqbal stated that a summary would be provided to Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif soon in order to dissolve the CPEC Authority, which has become a burden on which vast resources are being wasted while CPEC projects are being implemented slowly.
As per reports, Ahsan Iqbal received his first briefing on Wednesday, in which he was informed of the organization’s poor performance. During the briefing, it was reportedly revealed that 37 percent of CPEC power projects, or 1980 MW, are now not registered in the system because Chinese investors have not been paid their dues. He was also told that China’s total debt to 10 IPPs has reached Rs. 300 billion, of which 270 billion is due.
The coal-fired power plants at Hubco, Sahiwal, and Port Qasim have shut down one of their two power units due to a lack of fuel, a senior official affiliated with CPEC project told The Express on the condition of anonymity.
Besides, the works on several key projects in Gwadar, the CPEC’s base have been slowed down due to security reasons as well.