ISLAMABAD: Pakistan on Tuesday unveiled a plan to revive its dormant steel industry through a new maritime-industrial partnership that officials say could cut steel imports and save the country up to $13 billion over the next decade.
The proposal, presented by Maritime Affairs Minister Muhammad Junaid Anwar Chaudhry during a meeting with Special Assistant to the Prime Minister on Industries Haroon Akhtar Khan, seeks to integrate ship recycling, steel production and green industrial practices under one initiative.
Built with Soviet assistance in the 1970s, Pakistan Steel Mills (PSM) was once the country’s industrial flagship but has remained closed since 2015 after years of financial losses.
Successive governments have sought to restart or privatize the facility, including holding recent talks with Russian officials who originally helped set up the plant.
“Minister Chaudhry said the initiative could reshape Pakistan’s industrial and maritime sectors by integrating ship recycling, steel manufacturing and sustainable industrial practices into one ecosystem,” according to the statement released by the ministry after the meeting.
