“Many foreign companies have benefitted from the enabling environment for prospective investors in Pakistan,” Ambassador Masood Khalid stressed while speaking at the Pakistan Oil and Gas Promotion Conference in Beijing on Friday.
The conference, jointly arranged by the China Overseas Investment Union and Pakistan’s embassy in Beijing, showcased the country’s massive hydrocarbon potential in an effort to stimulate Chinese investment.
Khalid drew the attention of investors, who were present in large numbers, to the plentiful opportunities on offer in the exploration and production of coal, shale gas, minerals and oil.
He said Pakistan’s oil and gas sector had developed considerably in recent years with a liberal investment regime for foreign investors.
Under the policies, local and foreign investors are being equally treated and up to 100% foreign equity investment is allowed. Remittance of royalty, dividends, capital and profits is also permitted and foreign investment is fully protected.
The envoy also underscored the importance of Pakistan’s ideal location for trans-regional trade and investment because of its unique geography, saying it provided the cheapest and most viable sea route from western China to Central Asia, Middle East and Africa.
“Pakistan is naturally positioned to serve as the energy and trade corridor for China and the Gwadar Port provides the channel for transporting goods and supplying energy to and from China.”
The deep-sea port once fully developed and operational could not only meet urgent energy needs of China, but would do that in the most efficient way, Khalid said, adding an oil terminal and a refinery would be set up soon in addition to establishing primary infrastructure in Gwadar.
China Overseas Investment Union Executive Director Zheng Shuai expressed the hope that the incentives would encourage more Chinese oil and gas companies to venture into Pakistan’s hydrocarbon sector.
Published in The Express Tribune, October 11th, 2014.
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PML-N ... keep it up !