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[h=2]PSA get screwed in Pakistan[/h]
August 29th, 2012 |
Author: Online Press
Gwadar Port
(29 Aug) – The Singapore Port Authority (SPA) and its partners — National Logistics Cell and AKD group — have finally been allowed to quit Gwadar Port’s 40-year management and development contract after the government’s failure to transfer 584 acres of land in adverse possession of Pakistan Navy at the mouth of the port to pave way for its takeover by China.
“We have not been able to meet contractual obligations and resolve land issues. As a result they (SPA and its partners) have gone under duress and we issued them an NOC (no objection certificate) yesterday to give up their (management, operation, maintenance and development) contract,” Ports and Shipping Minister Babar Khan Ghauri told a meeting of the Senate’s Standing Committee on Ports and Shipping on Tuesday.
Sardar Fateh Muhammad Hassani chaired the meeting. “Now the Chinese will take over the Gwadar Port,” he said.
He indicated that China would invest US$10 billion to develop the port and manage its operations, but did not go into details about the proposed agreement.
After its development by the Chinese government at a cost of $288 million, Pakistan’s only deep seawater port was handed over to the SPA under a 40-year concession agreement in February 2007 for its “management, operations, maintenance and development”.
The NLC and AKD group of Karachi also held smaller shareholding in the agreement, which offered only nine per cent of gross income to the federal and provincial governments.
Ghauri regretted that while many people in the country blamed international players for unrest in Balochistan and competing regional port operators for failing the Gwadar Port, it was “shameful” that a friendly foreign operator had to leave the port because of the navy’s changing positions on vacating the land despite a clear cut decision by the government.
He warned that if the 584-acre plot at Shamba Ismail was not immediately vacated and transferred to the port, even the Chinese would not be able to develop the project as deepwater trans-shipment port.
He said the Chinese had turned down a request to take part in the bidding for operations of the port before the agreement was signed with the SPA joint venture, but now they were interested in the project.
Ghauri said the three services had been allotted about 25,000 acres to vacate the port’s land, but the navy started changing its position. It first sought 10 million rupees ($105,396) per acre of land which it had purchased at 180 rupees and then demanded an alternative plot of 1,000 acres. It then increased the demand to 1,615 acres and finally to 2,200 acres.
The minister said the demands were not acceptable and the Balochistan government was ready to provide an equal land (584 acres), of which 350 acres of government land was readily available while the remaining would be provided after purchasing it from private owners.
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Rest of the article from: http://www.asianewsnet.net/home/news.php?id=35682&sec=2
(29 Aug) – The Singapore Port Authority (SPA) and its partners — National Logistics Cell and AKD group — have finally been allowed to quit Gwadar Port’s 40-year management and development contract after the government’s failure to transfer 584 acres of land in adverse possession of Pakistan Navy at the mouth of the port to pave way for its takeover by China.
“We have not been able to meet contractual obligations and resolve land issues. As a result they (SPA and its partners) have gone under duress and we issued them an NOC (no objection certificate) yesterday to give up their (management, operation, maintenance and development) contract,” Ports and Shipping Minister Babar Khan Ghauri told a meeting of the Senate’s Standing Committee on Ports and Shipping on Tuesday.
Sardar Fateh Muhammad Hassani chaired the meeting. “Now the Chinese will take over the Gwadar Port,” he said.
He indicated that China would invest US$10 billion to develop the port and manage its operations, but did not go into details about the proposed agreement.
After its development by the Chinese government at a cost of $288 million, Pakistan’s only deep seawater port was handed over to the SPA under a 40-year concession agreement in February 2007 for its “management, operations, maintenance and development”.
The NLC and AKD group of Karachi also held smaller shareholding in the agreement, which offered only nine per cent of gross income to the federal and provincial governments.
Ghauri regretted that while many people in the country blamed international players for unrest in Balochistan and competing regional port operators for failing the Gwadar Port, it was “shameful” that a friendly foreign operator had to leave the port because of the navy’s changing positions on vacating the land despite a clear cut decision by the government.
He warned that if the 584-acre plot at Shamba Ismail was not immediately vacated and transferred to the port, even the Chinese would not be able to develop the project as deepwater trans-shipment port.
He said the Chinese had turned down a request to take part in the bidding for operations of the port before the agreement was signed with the SPA joint venture, but now they were interested in the project.
Ghauri said the three services had been allotted about 25,000 acres to vacate the port’s land, but the navy started changing its position. It first sought 10 million rupees ($105,396) per acre of land which it had purchased at 180 rupees and then demanded an alternative plot of 1,000 acres. It then increased the demand to 1,615 acres and finally to 2,200 acres.
The minister said the demands were not acceptable and the Balochistan government was ready to provide an equal land (584 acres), of which 350 acres of government land was readily available while the remaining would be provided after purchasing it from private owners.
.
Rest of the article from: http://www.asianewsnet.net/home/news.php?id=35682&sec=2
