ISLAMABAD – A number of China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) projectsare facing delays due to a financial crisis at the National HighwayAuthority (NHA).

Cheques for several firms working on road construction projects bounced,after which they decided to stop work. These firms include ZKB, SKB, SardarAshraf D Baloch, ACGC Chinese, Matracon, and China Railway 17 Group.

This is the first time a financial crisis has forced delays in CPECprojects.The Delayed Projects

Work on the following projects was stopped because of payment issues:

– All sections of Karachi-Lahore Motorway (KLM). – Western Route of CPEC, – Seven packages of Hakla0 Dera Ismail Khan roads measuring 400km.

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According to the firms’ representatives, cheques worth Rs 5 billion gotbounced after which the construction activities came to a halt. Severalother stakeholders, including laborers and engineers, were affected due tothe situation as well.

NHA’s spokesperson Kashif Zaman said that Rs 5 billion were issued on 29thJune for payments. Out of this, Rs 1.5 billion were cleared on the same daywhile “the remaining cheques that were deposited the next day could not becleared”.

About the companies suspending the work on the said projects, Mr. Zamansaid,

The progress on projects has not been affected. Same is true for HazaraMotorway and other sections.

He further said that most of these projects under question will becompleted by December 2018.

The spokesperson added that the matter had been forwarded to the governmentand would be resolved soon.