KARACHI: China’s Shandong Xinxu Group is planning to invest as much as $1.34 billion to build an integrated maritime industrial complex (IMIC) at Pakistan’s second-largest port in southern commercial capital Karachi, a senior official familiar with the project told Arab News on Tuesday.
IMIC is the government’s flagship initiative to modernize industrial operations through upgrading port infrastructure, establishing shipbuilding and recycling facilities as well as an integrated steel mill at Port Qasim, which houses the Qasim International Container Terminal of DP World.
“They have shown interest in investing an estimated $1.34 billion overall in the IMIC project,” said a maritime affairs ministry official on condition of anonymity since the project’s modalities are still being discussed.
The planned investment, if materialized soon would augur well for Pakistan’s economy which has stabilized with the help of a $7 billion International Monetary Fund’s loan but desperately awaits dollar inflows especially on account of foreign direct investment (FDI) and exports, which according to official data, dropped 43 percent to $808 million in July-Dec.FY26 and 7 percent to $18.2 billion in July-Jan. FY26 period, respectively.
