UAE to take over Karachi Port Terminals

LAHORE: Pakistan has constituted a negotiation committee to finalise a deal with the United Arab Emirates (UAE) for handing over the Karachiportterminals.

This move may mark the first intergovernmentaltransactionunder a law enacted last year to raise emergency funds, The Express Tribunereported.

Finance Minister Ishaq Dar chaired the meeting of the Cabinet Committee on Inter-Governmental CommercialTransactions.

The Cabinet Committee decided to set up a committee to negotiate a commercial agreement between the Karachi Port Trust (KPT) and the

UAE Government, according to the decision.

The negotiation committee has also been permitted to finalise a draft operation, maintenance, investment, and development agreement under the governmentto-government arrangements with a nominated agency of the UAE for handing over the Karachi port terminals.

The negotiation committee set up to finalise a framework agreement will be headed by the Minister for Maritime Affairs, FaisalSabzwari.

The committee members include the additional secretaries of Finance and Foreign Affairs, the special assistant to PM Jehanzeb Khan, the Chairman of the Karachi Port Terminal (KPT), and the general managersoftheKPT.

Pakistan aims to reach a deal to handovertheterminalstoAbuDhabi Ports (ADP), a subsidiary of the Abu DhabiPortsGroup.

The UAE Government had shown interest in acquiring the Karachi port terminals that were under the administrativecontrolofthePakistan International Containers Terminals (PICT)lastyear.

Abu Dhabi Ports, part of AD Ports Group, owns or operates 10 ports and terminalsintheUAE.