Thatta Cement Company Ltd has unveiled plans to diversify far beyond clinker and bagged cement: its newly created, wholly owned subsidiary, Minsk Work Tractor & Assembling (Pvt) Ltd (MWTA), has signed an exclusive agreement with Minsk Tractor Works of Belarus to assemble and locally produce BELARUS-brand tractors in Balochistan. The company disclosed the development to the Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX), stating that MWTA has been granted the exclusive right to assemble BELARUS tractors in Balochistan and that the project aims to promote industrial development, job creation and technology transfer by establishing a local assembly facility in the province.
Corporate diversification is hardly unusual in Pakistan, but a cement producer venturing into tractor assembly raised eyebrows for the scale of the leap and for its geopolitical overtones. Thatta Cement’s notice frames the deal as a long-term strategic step to “diversify the Thatta Cement Group’s business portfolio.” It also positions the planned assembly line as a development catalyst for Balochistan, where industrial ventures outside mining have historically been sparse. Under the agreement, Thatta’s MWTA subsidiary will work with Minsk Tractor Works (MTZ) to assemble the BELARUS range locally, with the Belarussian manufacturer conferring exclusivity in the province.
The initiative lands at a time when Pakistan’s farm mechanisation cycle has been whipsawed by weather, credit and policy shifts, yet demand for tractors remains structurally tied to the country’s agricultural base. The content in this publication is expensive to produce. But unlike other journalistic outfits, business publications have to cover the very organizations that directly give them advertisements. Hence, this large source of revenue, which is the lifeblood of other media houses, is severely compromised on account of Profit’s no-compromise policy when it comes to our reporting. No wonder, Profit has lost multiple ad deals, worth tens of millions of rupees, due to stories that held big businesses to account. Hence, for our work to continue unfettered, it must be supported by discerning readers who know the value of quality business journalism, not just for the economy but for the society as a whole.To read the full article, subscribe and support independent business journalism in Pakistan
