China has committed to grant a loan of 6.5 billion dollars to Pakistan for the construction of a major nuclear power project in Karachi in a bid to strengthen ties with its strategic partner.
The China National Nuclear Cooperation (CNNC) has promised to finance the project with two reactors of 1,100 megawatts capacity each, the Express Tribune reports.
Chairman of the Pakistan Atomic Energy Commission Ansar Parvez said that the project would be completed by 2019 and each of the two reactors would be larger than the combined power of all nuclear reactors now operating in Pakistan.
According to the sources, China has also waived a 250,000 dollars insurance premium on the loan.
