Sindh Approves 16.5-Kilometre Karachi Port to Qayyumabad Expressway Under Public-Private Partnership

The Sindh government has approved a 16.5-kilometre, four-lane expressway connecting Karachi Port to Qayyumabad, clearing the way for a major infrastructure corridor to be developed through a public-private partnership. The decision was taken at the 53rd meeting of the Public-Private Partnership Policy Board, which is chaired by Chief Minister Syed Murad Ali Shah.

According to officials, the corridor will link Shahrah-e-Bhutto to the East Wharf of Karachi Port, with access along the route kept under control. The contract has been set at 27.5 years, made up of 2.5 years for construction and 25 years for operation and maintenance. The project will follow a design, finance, construction, operation, maintenance and transfer model.

The board also reviewed a proposal to bring in an Infrastructure Real Estate Investment Trust in place of Class A equity in the project company. Discussions additionally covered the Karachi Port Trust licence agreement and the issuance of a final no-objection certificate, both of which are needed before the project can move to the implementation stage.

Alongside the expressway, the Chief Minister approved riverbank protection works along the Shahrah-e-Bhutto Expressway. These include underwater protective embankments, an additional loop and ramp at Memon Goth Interchange No. 5, and the installation of street lights.

The new corridor is expected to improve the movement of freight and traffic between the port and the city's eastern districts, an area that has seen growing congestion and repeated flood-related damage to roads in recent years. The riverbank works are intended to shield the expressway from erosion and seasonal flooding.

The approval marks a step forward for Sindh's use of public-private partnerships to fund large transport projects, with the private partner responsible for financing, building and operating the corridor before transferring it back to the government at the end of the concession period.