From iron to copper age

Pakistan entered the Iron Age in the year 1973 when work commenced on the construction of Pakistan Steel Mills (PSM). Bhutto was in a hurry as we were already behind in producing the basic building blocks of development.

Located at Port Qasim it was the largest industrial complex of the country. It reached peak production of 3 MTPY (Million Tons Per Year) before the production was stopped in June 2015. It was a short entry and exit out of the vital and much needed Iron Age.

Today Pakistan is importing 6 to 7 MTPY of steel. Originally, the Blast Furnace was designed on imported Iron Ore and Coal which were to be replaced by indigenous resources which never happened. The deposits at Kalabagh, Chinoit, Chichalli, Naokundi remain un-utilised till today.

In the recently held Minerals Forum (April 8, 9) at Islamabad, the message was loud and clear: Pakistan is now entering the copper age.

While the concentrates of copper, gold, silver from Saindak are being shifted to China for refining, Reko Diq will start production in the year 2028. It will be one of the largest copper mines of the world. Local production will be limited to producing concentrate which will then be shipped abroad for refining from Port Qasim, the same location where stands the monument of our iron age.

In 1973, the berths were used for import of raw materials for local steel production, while in 2028 our valuable minerals will be exported for finishing and value addition to be imported back for our domestic use at a much higher price.

PSM was established to meet our needs while we have decided to enter the Copper Age by export of the un-finished concentrate.

The Tethalan Belt that stretches from the province of Balochistan all the way up to Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) is rich in minerals of all kinds. Metallurgical Corporation of China (MCC), the contractor who built the mine at Saindak as a turnkey project, now owns and runs it.

After twenty years of mining (1992 to 2022) MCC has been granted an extension for another ten years. Reko Dig Mining Company jointly owned by Barrack Gold and Governments of Pakistan and Balochistan have succeeded in getting financing of USD 3 billion to build the mining infrastructure for production of concentrate that includes crushing, grinding and floatation to produce concentrate.

We have an opportunity to enter the Copper Age with a bang if we take charge of our share of the concentrate and process it locally to produce our own copper, gold, silver. Finishing gold and copper are easier as they come in relatively pure form.

Copper requires smelting followed by refining through an electrolytic process, which is power intensive. A metal refining facility can be set-up at Thar where inexpensive electricity is available.

The decade of the seventies was both tumultuous and exciting. First the free and fair elections of 1970 where the will of the people prevailed followed by the break-up of Jinnah’s Pakistan but did usher in an era of civilian supremacy. Several important projects were launched in the country to restart the process of nation building which had been stalled. For professionals those were challenging times.

Inspired by the PSM project I decided to become a Metallurgist. Our final year project was built around the Blast Furnace which was being installed to convert the ore into Pig Iron which was then converted to produce Steel. Pakistan entered the Iron Age with our heads-up. Resource Development Corporation (RDC) was set up to develop the mining sector of the country. It was RDC that launched the Saindak project with the formation of Saindak Metals Limited (SML), which then started building the first Copper mine of Pakistan in the year 1992. MCC was selected as the contractor.

Like PSM of the seventies SML was the largest project of its time costing Rs 16 billion with a foreign exchange component USD 580 million provided by China.

Due to gross mismanagement SML was unable to produce the much-needed Copper for the country.

Through PSM we were able to enter the Iron Age in the decade of the seventies but could not enter the Copper Age in the decade of the nineties due to failure of SML. It did not end here. As SML was the largest project launched by RDC the Government of Baluchistan insisted that head-office of RDC should be shifted to Quetta which it was but then it was merged with SML. All the exploratory work done by RDC under the dynamic leadership of the great Geologist Dr Bilgrami was shelved.

Nations must learn from their mistakes to come out of the Stone Age and enter the modern era of Iron and Copper ages. While we have exited out of the Iron Age due to mismanagement and vested self interests our next journey should be carefully planned. Development of Thar Coal is a jewel in our crown. We were able to reach the Black Gold in the year 2018.

Two mines are functional; there each producing about 7 MTPY of Coal which is being used for power generation. Last year we were able to Gasifier the coal to produce our own Synthetic Natural Gas (SNG) to replace the imported LNG (Liquefied Natural Gas). Currently, a complete Coal-Based Energy System is being developed using 21st century Clean Coal Technologies.

Thar is the energy future of Pakistan. Having worked on all major minerals project of Pakistan, I firmly believe that our future is bright provided we are able to build a proper framework with nation building in mind every other consideration should be pushed aside.

Pakistan and its people should come first if we desire to enter the Copper Age and prosper not exit as we did in case of Iron by shutting down PSM. Focus must be on the development of Pakistan.

Copyright Business Recorder, 2025