Finance Minister Mohamed Uranzib said that the Rico Dick and Mining project from copper will play a major role in converting Pakistan into an export economy, with annual export profits from the mine, which is expected to reach $ 2.8 billion once production begins in 2028.
Speaking in the Chamber of Commerce in Lahore on Saturday, the Minister of Finance described the copper as a decisive element in the global transformation towards renewable energy, noting the high global demand and deficiency. “Copper will play the most important role in terms of energy transmission,” he pointed out, adding, “For this, deposits in Reko DIQ are our answer.”
Aurangzeb has successfully compared the capabilities of RKO DIQ to the success of Indonesia with Nickel, which achieved $ 22 billion of export profits in 2024.
The minister highlighted the overall economy improvements, including low inflation, low policy rates, kibor rates, and low corporate debt service costs. He admitted the last fluctuation in the stock market, but he warned against reading in short -term fluctuations. “I consider our stock market a data point … is still not deep enough to reflect the main street morale.”
Referring to a conversation with the Ethiopian Ambassador during the exhibition in Gogranwala 2025, Uranzib stressed the need for exporting through sectors. “Each one sector should be issued,” he said.
Regarding financial matters, the minister stated that discussions with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) are advancing positively, and the government is committed to improving tax collection. He said: “We aim to raise the tax rate to GDP from 9 to 10 % to 13 %. Only if we expand the tax base, this will be the last International Monetary Fund program.”
Aurangzeb also pointed to the upcoming relief measures, including simplifying the submission of the income tax for the salary category through mobile phone applications. He participated that he did not take a salary in the past 15 months, confirming his commitment to the public service.
On the privatization front, he stressed that the new expressions of interest to selling Pakistani International Airlines (PIA) will be released later this month.
