Pakistan pledges more security for China-run mine after insurgency warning

ISLAMABAD/QUETTA — Pakistan said on Wednesday (July 15) it was stepping up security around a Chinese-run copper and gold mine in Balochistan after insurgent violence disrupted supply routes, and the mine's operator denied a report that the project could be forced to shut down.

Saindak Metals Limited's managing director, Raziq Sanjrani, called the closure report, first published by the Financial Times, factually incorrect. 

The mine has run without interruption for 25 years and "there is no possibility of its shutdown", he said in a statement.

He said the company had asked Pakistan's authorities for help moving furnace oil to the site after some transporters balked at using certain routes through Balochistan, and that security agencies had since assured the company the supply would continue uninterrupted.

State Minister for Interior Talal Chaudhry said Islamabad had received the mine operator's security concerns in early July and ordered agencies to increase deployment around its installations, personnel and cargo.

"We have directed the provincial authorities and all concerned security agencies to beef up deployment for all of their installations, personnel, logistics and transportation," Chaudhry told Reuters.

"It is our priority to safeguard all projects run by international companies in Pakistan," he said, adding that logistics and cargo shipments to the site would receive additional security protection.

Balochistan, which borders Iran and Afghanistan, hosts several major Chinese-backed ⁠projects, including the deep-water port of Gwadar.

Baloch separatists have sought an independent state for decades, arguing that Pakistan and its foreign allies have exploited the province's natural resources without adequately benefiting local communities.

The Financial Times reported earlier on Wednesday that Saindak's managing director had warned Pakistan's energy ministry that operations could become unsustainable within a month because deteriorating security conditions were disrupting supply routes.

The Saindak mine is operated by the state-owned Metallurgical Corporation of China under a lease extended in 2022, and exports most of its output to China.

China's foreign ministry said it was unaware of the situation but that Beijing would work with its close partner Pakistan to protect Chinese citizens, projects and institutions in the country.

The unrest in Balochistan has also clouded the outlook for Barrick Mining's US$9 billion (S$11 billion) Reko Diq gold and copper project, about 50 km from Saindak.

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