ISLAMABAD: Asian Development Bank (ADB) President Masato Kanda said this week that the institution’s $410 million financing package for Pakistan’s Reko Diq copper mine will create thousands of jobs in the country and position it to be a key supplier of critical minerals. 

Located in Pakistan’s largest province by land but also its poorest, Balochistan, Reko Diq is among the world’s biggest untapped deposits of copper and gold. The project is expected to generate approximately $74 billion in free cash flow over the next 37 years.

Kanda confirmed in a video message on Saturday that the package to develop the copper mine was approved last week. Islamabad hopes the mine will serve as a springboard to draw more foreign interest to its mineral sector, particularly to exploit rare earth deposits. 

“ADB’s $410 million financing package for Reko Diq, approved last week, will create thousands of jobs while positioning Pakistan as a key supplier of critical minerals,” Kanda said.

Kanda, who visited Pakistan this week as a state guest, spoke about his brief visit to the country. The ADB official said he met Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, during which he conveyed his condolences at the loss of lives due to the devastating floods in the country. 

“We also discussed transformative investments, enhanced private sector engagement, and Pakistan’s role as a strategic supplier of critical minerals for the global clean energy transition,” Kanda said.

Pakistan has strived to attract international investors to its critical minerals sector in recent months. Islamabad has already attracted interest from the Trump administration and offered future concessions to US companies.

As per a report in the international news agency Reuters this month, the ADB loans and financing guarantee will support Reko Diq’s development. The report said that the financing is composed of two loans totaling $300 million to Barrick and a $110 million financing guarantee for the Pakistani government.

Canada-based Barrick Gold company owns a 50 percent stake in the Reko Diq mine and the governments of Pakistan and Balochistan own the other 50 percent.

The project is expected to start production by the end of 2028 and will produce 200,000 tons of copper per year in its first phase, with an estimated cost of $5.5 billion. The first phase is expected to be completed by 2029, Barrick’s CEO Mark Bristow told Pakistani digital media outlet Dawn News English in January.

A second phase, estimated to cost $3.5 billion, will double production, he added.