PESHAWAR: Dubai-based DP World will invest $400 million in a freight corridor from Pakistan’s southern port city of Karachi to the Pipri marshalling yard, the state-run National Logistics Corporation (NLC) said on Sunday. 

The Karachi Freight Corridor is an infrastructure project in Pakistan aimed at improving movement of freight from Karachi, Pakistan’s largest city by population and its commercial hub, to various parts of the country. The project involves the construction of a dedicated double-track corridor and other related facilities that will run 50 km from Karachi port to the Pipri marshalling yard.

“The construction of the dedicated freight corridor Pipri project will commence with immediate foreign direct investment of $20 million, which will subsequently reach $400 million under a joint venture agreement between DP World/National Logistics Corporation (NLC) and Pakistan Railways,” the statement said. 

Pakistan and the UAE last year signed two inter-governmental framework agreements to establish a dedicated rail freight corridor and economic zone near Karachi. 

The agreements cover plans for over $3 billion investments in railways, economic zones and infrastructure. DP World will act on behalf of Dubai, while the Pakistan Railways and Port Qasim Authority will act on behalf of Pakistan.

The NLC pointed out that once operational, the Karachi Freight Corridor project will significantly reduce port congestion, accelerate trade facilitation and modernize Pakistan’s logistics infrastructure. 

It said the move would help boost imports, exports and the overall economic activity in the country.

By investing in freight and port infrastructure, Islamabad hopes to capture a larger share of regional trade flows, a goal that has gained urgency as Pakistan struggles to revive its economy and expand exports.

DP World has been collaborating with NLC in improving Pakistan’s logistics infrastructure. Earlier this week, the NLC and DP World completed their first commercial cargo delivery from the UAE to Tajikistan via Karachi. 

The collaboration entailed moving 38 tons of automotive spare parts from Jebel Ali port in Dubai to Karachi and then transporting them overland to Dushanbe. 

The journey was completed in just 16 days, which DP World said was the fastest transit time currently available between Dubai and Dushanbe. Competing routes typically take between 20 and 70 days.