China Proposes $15bn Indus Dam Scheme

Extremism is not deterring China’s foreign-investment plans with Pakistan. The builders behind the world’s largest dam, China’s Three Gorges, have proposed a $15 billion dam project for Pakistan and the Indus River, promising to control floods and produce power, reports William MacNamara for the Financial Times. The Indus is about 3000 kilometers long, passing from Tibet to Kashmir and Pakistan. Floods put one fifth of the nation underwater in summer 2010 and displaced more than 2 million people. Multinational firms also prepare to bid on natural-gas projects in Pakistan. “Recent growth in estimates of its natural gas reserves – composed mostly of unconventional shale and tight gas – has led Pakistan to seek investment from partners such as BP and Shell,” MacNamara reports. “Chinese companies have taken a lead on natural resources investment.” Depending on employment prospects, security and planning, the projects in remote regions with multinational partners could either provoke or subdue extremism. – YaleGlobal