Except for completion of some ongoing projects, the progress on the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) would remain comparatively dull after first two years of an exciting full swing implementation that delivered a host of Early Harvest Projects (EHP) or brought them up to an advanced stage.
2018 will be a year of stock taking and planning for the future of CPEC until 2030. This is because the project would be entering a new phase — from completion of energy projects and road construction the focus would shift to industrialisation and long term financial arrangements between the two countries, having far reaching implications.
Also the implementation would move from roads to railway network. Karachi-Peshawar Main Line (ML-1) worth $8.2 billion and Karachi Circular Railway of $3.5bn estimated cost would be two central areas of attention, provided their implementation milestones are firmed up and agreements are reached on costing and repayment pricing.