Pakistan signs $240mn loan agreement with Saudi Fund for Development for KP dam

The government has signed a $240-million loan agreement with the Saudi Fund for Development (SFD) to support the Mohmand Multipurpose Dam Project.

As per a statement released by the SFD, the Kingdom’s agency that provides development assistance to developing countries, the Mohmand Multipurpose Dam Project will enhance water and food security, and improve the standard of living for people living in the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province.

The project, which is co-financed by the SFD, OPEC, Islamic Development Bank, and the Kuwait Fund for Arab Economic Development, aligns with some of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDG). These include food security, clean water and clean energy.

The project is expected to have a significant impact on Pakistan’s energy and water sectors, read the statement.

“By using renewable energy sources, the project will generate 800 MW of electricity production capacity, contributing to Pakistan’s energy security,” said SFD.

In addition, the storage of 1.6 million m3 of water will support sustainable agricultural practices, enable irrigation of 6,773 hectares of new land, and increase the total cropping area from 1,517 hectares to 9,227 hectares in the province, facilitating agricultural activities.

The agreement was signed by the SFD CEO Sultan Abdulrahman Al-Marshad, and the Federal Secretary for Ministry of Economic Affairs, Pakistan, Dr Kazim Niaz.

During the agreement signing ceremony, the CEO of SFD emphasised the strong developmental ties between KSA and Pakistan.

Deal signed with SFD to finance oil derivatives worth $1bn

He highlighted the significance of joint cooperation between development funds, as evidenced by this project. He further emphasized that this initiative is an extension of SFD’s continued support for development projects and programs in Pakistan since its inception.

As per the statement, to date, SFD has financed around 41 development projects and programs in Pakistan, amounting to approximately $1.4 billion, In addition SFD has financed oil derivatives worth more than $5.4 billion between 2019 and 2023 to support Pakistan’s economy.

In September last year, SFD had confirmed the rollover of $3 billion deposits with Pakistan for another year. The amount was deposited by the SFD for one year in December 2021 under an agreement between SFD and the State Bank of Pakistan to build the depleting foreign exchange reserves of Pakistan.