Active Development AidData Chinese Aid

Chinese Government pledges loan for the Havelian Dry Dock Port Project

$65M USD

Funder	Unspecified Chinese Government Institution
Recipient Organization	Government of Pakistan
Country	Pakistan
Start Date	Jan 01, 2017
End Date	Mar 27, 2033
Duration	5,929 days
Number of Grantees	1
Roles	Recipient
Data Source	AidData Chinese Aid
Grant ID	`53722`

Grant Description

Chinese Government pledges loan for the Havelian Dry Dock Port Project In November 2016, a request was made for Chinese funding for the $65 million Havelian Dry Dock Port.

The request came as the result of a joint feasibility study of the Main Line 1 ML1 and this project in August 2014 during the third Joint Cooperation Council (JCC) in Beijing.

To meet the demand of containerized future freight traffic in connection with Pak-China Economic Corridor, the dry port will be established at Havelian by utilizing the railway land, railhead facilities, high speed / capacity stock, and potential of well established off-dock terminal for handling bonded import / export containers.

In January 2017, the Pakistani government's Railway Division contributed 28 million Pakistani rupees for a comprehensive feasibility study for upgrading Main Line 1. According to the 2016 Government of Pakistan Bond Prospectus, the project cost is $65 million. Expected completion is in 2018.

The Government of Pakistan intended to finance this project with a government concessional loan (GCL) from China Eximbank. A project framework agreement was signed in May 2017 and a groundbreaking ceremony was scheduled for 2018. However, the project has faced major delays.

In mid-2019 the Government of Pakistan announced that it would pursue this project on a Public-Private Partnership (PPP) basis or a Build, Operate, and Transfer (BOT) basis if the project was declared feasible after the completion of commercial and financial feasibility study. As of October 2022, this project is still facing significant delays.

In 2018, the proposed acquisition of land from villages of Baldhair, Bagra No.2, Dobandi and Kholian was rejected by villagers due to the below market rates they were offered. Then, Chinese engineers left the site in February 2020 due to Covid-19.

The Chinese and Pakistani consultants have revisited the site multiple times and deemed it unfeasible for establishment of the port.

📋 Staff Comments

1. The railway utilized in conjunction with this port is also a Chinese-financed CPEC project.

📚 Sources & References

Havelian Dry Port (450 M. Twenty-Foot Equivalent Units)
CPEC Project Details: Havelian Dry port (450 M. Twenty-Foot Equivalent Units)
BRI Factsheet Series – Havelian Dry Port
Federal Minister for Planning
Development and Reform chairs meeting to review progress on CPEC projects - Press Note issued by Press Information Department
Montly Bulletin Foreign Economic Assistance March 2020
Havelian Dry port (450 M. Twenty-Foot Equivalent Units), 2016 Government of Pakistan Bond Prospectus
Govt provided Rs5.8b for Burhan-DI Khan Motorway
Pakistan Economic Survey 2017-2018: Chapter 13 - Transport and Communication
Work on Haripur dry port yet to start after five years Loan applications and disbursements are still being received and processed as the projects continue to evolve. Ongoing monitoring and evaluation are in place to ensure project continuity.