Pakistan pitches mineral wealth to global investors as forum opens with 60 countries

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan put its mineral wealth before global investors on Thursday as the two-day Pakistan Minerals Investment Forum 2026 opened at the Jinnah Convention Centre. Delegations from 60 countries, 122 exhibitors and more than 5,000 attendees took part on the first day, according to the state-run Oil and Gas Development Company, the event’s organiser. Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar inaugurated the forum, promising predictable, investor-friendly policies and institutional support for the mining sector.

Why minerals matter now

Dar said the government had made mineral development a strategic national economic priority, essential to diversifying exports, strengthening the industrial base and mobilising domestic and foreign investment. He pointed to Pakistan’s copper and gold potential along the Tethyan Metallogenic Belt and held up the Reko Diq copper-gold project in Balochistan as an example of collaboration combining international expertise, national participation and provincial ownership. Growing global demand for minerals used in clean energy, electric vehicles and battery storage, he said, had opened new opportunities for Pakistan.

The economy behind the pitch

Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb told the forum that mining could become a major driver of sustainable growth, exports and investment. He cited a fiscal deficit at a 22-year low, three consecutive years of primary surpluses and foreign exchange reserves of $21.5 billion — more than three months of import cover. The forum also saw the launch of the National Mineral Data Centre, the GSP Geoportal and an Agreement Exchange to improve access to geological information and ease cooperation in the sector.

What the provinces offered

In a session on provincial prospectivity, the provinces set out their mineral wealth. Punjab Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz said revenue from the province’s Mines and Minerals Department had risen from Rs10 billion to Rs40 billion in just over two years, and that Chiniot held an estimated 261.5 million tonnes of iron ore. Sindh Chief Minister Murad Ali Shah spoke of 27 identified minerals and Thar coal, while Balochistan Chief Minister Sarfraz Bugti assured investors of a secure environment. Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and Chief of Defence Forces Field Marshal Syed Asim Munir are scheduled to address the forum on its second day, Friday.