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Qatar’s Al-Thani Group has indicated plans to withdraw its 49 percent share from the Port Qasim coal power project, becoming the latest foreign investor to reconsider operations in Pakistan amid financial pressures and policy concerns.
The 1,320 MW Port Qasim Power Project, developed under the China Pakistan Economic Corridor, consists of two 660 MW supercritical coal units created through a $2.09 billion partnership between Qatar’s Al-Mirqab Capital and China’s Power Construction Corporation, a subsidiary of Sinohydro Resources Limited. Spread across 330 acres outside Karachi, the project received over $1 billion from the Al-Thani Group, which is now seeking options for exit.
Al-Mirqab Capital has issued a formal Notice of Intent to Divest to senior government officials, including Federal Minister for Power Sardar Awais Ahmad Khan Leghari and Minister for Economic Affairs Senator Ahad Khan Cheema. The company also advised that all future discussions should proceed through diplomatic channels.
The decision follows prolonged disputes over delayed payments. The Port Qasim Electric Power Company has repeatedly flagged chronic receivable issues involving the Central Power Purchasing Agency Guaranteed. Outstanding dues owed to Chinese CPEC power producers reportedly stand near Rs400 billion. In a recent communication, Port Qasim management warned that operations could be halted if CPPA G failed to meet the financial obligations outlined in the Power Purchase Agreement. Company representative Mr. Dongfeng stated that a shutdown would harm all sides and urged immediate action to avoid a breach of Pakistan’s sovereign guarantees.
Last year, former Qatari Prime Minister Sheikh Hamad Bin Jassim Bin Jaber Al Thani wrote to Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif to request the release of $450 million owed to the project. Despite the involvement of the Prime Minister’s Special Assistant on Foreign Affairs, Tariq Fatemi, the matter remains unsettled.
Al-Mirqab Capital, based in Doha, functions as the family office of Sheikh Hamad Bin Jassim Bin Jaber Al Thani and manages a diverse international investment portfolio covering real estate, equities, and private assets.
