Port Qasim earned Rs107 billion from 7,850 foreign ship calls, Gwadar made Rs574 million in 2021-25

The government told the National Assembly that it earned Rs 107.696 billion from 7,850 foreign vessels calling at Port Qasim during 2021-25, while Gwadar Port generated Rs 573.921 million over the same period.

In a written reply during Question Hour, Minister for Maritime Affairs Muhammad Junaid Anwar provided a breakdown of ship types visiting Port Qasim: 3,200 container vessels, 2,100 oil and chemical tankers, 2,000 bulk carriers and 550 LNG carriers.

He also shared a size category breakdown, stating that 2,500 ships fell in the Handymax or medium-range class, about 3,000 were Panamax, 1,800 were Post-Panamax or Aframax, and 550 LNG carriers were in the Q-Flex or Q-Max category.

On the country or region of origin, the minister said about 40% of ships came from the Middle East, including the UAE, Saudi Arabia, Qatar and Oman. He said 30% arrived from the Far East, including China, Singapore, Malaysia and South Korea, while 20% were linked to Europe, including the UK, Netherlands, Germany and Greece, and 10% came from other regions, including Africa and the Americas.

For Gwadar Port, the minister said total revenue over the last five fiscal years stood at Rs 573.921 million, with annual receipts of Rs 44.3 million in 2020-21, Rs 66.8 million in 2021-22, Rs 124.44 million in 2022-23, Rs 211.32 million in 2023-24 and Rs 127 million in 2024-25.

He said the Gwadar Port Authority was set up under the Gwadar Port Authority Ordinance, 2002 and functions as a statutory body under the administrative control of the Ministry of Maritime Affairs. He told the House there is currently no policy provision for revenue sharing with the Government of Balochistan from GPA revenues, and said there is no legal or contractual framework that provides for such a share.