Pakistan, China Finalize $7 Billion ML-1 Railway Financing Plan

Islamabad | September 9, 2025 – Pakistan and China have agreed to establish a $7 billion financing consortium for the Mainline-1 (ML-1) railway project, one of the largest infrastructure ventures under the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC).

The agreement was announced by Planning Minister Ahsan Iqbal following Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif’s recent visit to Beijing. He confirmed that the financing consortium will include the Asian Development Bank (ADB), Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB), China, and Pakistan as key partners.

The ML-1 project will modernize the 1,700-km Karachi-to-Peshawar railway line, expanding capacity and reducing travel time across Pakistan’s busiest route. Minister Iqbal also revealed that China had assured support not only for ML-1 but also for the Karakoram Highway upgrade. Negotiations with financiers are expected to conclude within weeks.

Criticizing past political delays, Iqbal said that both the ML-1 and Sukkur-Hyderabad Motorway could have been completed earlier had it not been for disruptions after 2018. He accused the previous PTI government of “derailing the process.”

Alongside the financing plan, Pakistan and China agreed on a four-year CPEC action plan (2025–29), which aims to deepen economic and strategic cooperation. The roadmap prioritizes agriculture modernization, industrial development, stronger trade ties, security collaboration, and people-to-people exchanges.

The next meeting of the CPEC Joint Cooperation Council is scheduled for September 26 in Beijing, where final details will be discussed.

Officials described the ML-1 financing agreement and the action plan as a “solid breakthrough” in the second phase of CPEC, reinforcing the long-standing partnership between the two countries.

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