KARACHI: Russia has offered Pakistan assistance to revive Pakistan Steel Mills (PSM), a significant national asset that has faced operational challenges for years.
Russia’s Ambassador to Pakistan Albert P. Khorev on Monday in a meeting with Chief Minister Sindh Syed Murad Ali Shah said that Russian and Pakistani experts will discuss the matters related to the Pakistan Steel Mills in an online meeting in the next week, according to a press release issued by Office of the Chief Minister. He said that a delegation of Russian experts will also visit the Steel Mills after the online meeting between the two sides.
A New Beginning for PSM
According to the press release, the two sides agreed to take measures to improve the efficiency of the Pakistan Steel Mills (PSM). The CM Sindh sought the cooperation of Russia to revive the Steel Mills and proposed the Russian envoy to install a new plant of the Steel Mills.
The government of Pakistan was reportedly considering a proposal for establishing a new Steel Mills in Karachi with the cooperation of Russia as both sides agreed to form working groups to push ahead with the project, according to the Express Tribune.
In that connection, Russian Federation Deputy Minister of Industry and Trade Aleksei Gruzdev also met Pakistan’s Minister for Industries, Production and National Food Security Rana Tanveer Hussain on September 19 of the current year. Pakistan’s Minister informed the Russian counterpart that the government had earmarked 700 acres of land of Pakistan Steel Mills (PSM) for setting up the new steel mill.
Pakistan’s Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif reportedly wants to privatise loss-making public enterprises including Steel Mills. However, the federal government coalition partner PPP Chairman Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari says that the decision regarding privatising public institutions including PSM should not be made without the input of the government of Sindh. He was of the view that the federal government should go for public-private partnership instead privatisation. He also advocated for public-private partnerships, adding Sindh government ready to acquire Pakistan Steel Mills.
Pakistan and Russia Ties
The idea of a steel mill was floated in the first five-year plan of 1955-60. Pakistan inked a deal with former Soviet Union for a feasibility report on the steel mill in 1969. Pakistan’s former prime minister Zulfikar Ali Bhutto laid the foundation stone of PSM on December 30, 1973.
Construction work started in 1974 by a consortium of Pakistani firms under the supervision of former Soviet experts and engineers. Former PSM employees said that over 400 Russians were involved in the project of the Steel Mills. PSM started commercial operations on December 25, 1984.
The ex-Soviet Union set up 35 steel mills in different nations and 1.1 million tons was the standard capacity of those mills while PSM was one of them.
Pakistan and Russia are cooperating in many sectors including trade, industry, energy, connectivity, science, technology, and education. Recently, high officials of Russia also visited Pakistan to further extend bilateral cooperation with Pakistan. Islamabad and Moscow agreed to pursue robust talks and strengthen cooperation in various sectors. The two sides made the agreement during a meeting between PM Shehbaz Sharif and his Russian counterpart, Mikhail Mishustin, held in Islamabad on the sidelines of the 23rd Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) Council of Heads of Government meeting in October. Mikhail Mishustin was the first Russian PM to visit Pakistan since 2007. Russia’s Deputy PM Alexei Overchuk visited Islamabad last month.
