Saudi Arabia Offers to Buy 15% Stake in Reko Diq

Saudi Arabia has offered to buy 15 percent stake in Pakistan’s Reko Diq mining project, alongside a substantial grant for infrastructure development around the mining area. Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund (PIF) through Manara Minerals proposed to acquire 15 percent of the federal government’s 25 percent share in the project. Pakistan will form a negotiation committee to review the offer and recommend a final price to the federal cabinet, reported Express Tribune. The Saudi proposal also includes a grant for constructing the Mashkhel-Panjoor road. The Ministry of Economic Affairs is in discussions with the Saudi Fund for Development to finalize this road project. Pakistan aims to maximize the offer price by encouraging Saudi Arabia to pay upfront to local companies holding shares in the project. The federal government is also negotiating additional financial support from Saudi Arabia, including a $5 billion investment in mining and agriculture by June 2025. As part of the Reko Diq project’s broader financing plan, the US Export-Import Bank has expressed interest in providing up to $2 billion in loans. The project’s total cost is estimated at $6-6.5 billion.