ISLAMABAD –
The first ever precise estimates of the CPEC loans and returns oninvestment have been revealed in a report.
Pakistan will pay $40 billion to China in 20 years in shape of repaymentsof debt and dividends on a $26.5 billion investment under flagshipChina-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC), documents of the Ministry ofPlanning and Development reveal, Tribune has reported.
Out of $39.83 billion – to be precise – the debt repayments of energy andinfrastructure projects amount to $28.43 billion. The rest of $11.4 billionwill be paid in shape of dividends to the investors, showed the officialestimates.
The figures are significantly lower than the projections made by someprivate institutions, primarily because the outflows have been worked outon the basis of only $26.5 billion investment.
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This suggests that unlike the claims of $50 billion to $62 billion CPECinvestment, the actual investment likely to remain half of the initiallyannounced investment figures.
The only major project that can materialise in the next few years is $8.2billion Mainline-I Project of Pakistan Railways. The mainline project costhas not been included in these estimates.
The Ministry of Finance has also shared these estimates with theInternational Monetary Fund (IMF) last month, confirmed a governmentspokesman on CPEC affairs. The country on an average will return $2 billionper annum to China.
