Pakistan and Iran have signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) for the supply of 100 megawatts (MW) of electricity to Gwadar.

This came during Energy Minister Khurram Dastgir’s visit to the neighbouring country. He was in Iran from March 10 to 13 to discuss power projects.

The agreement was initiated during Dastgir’s earlier visit in June 2022, following which the transmission line was laid from Iran to the port city.

Dastgir had meetings with his Iranian counterpart Ali Akber Mehrabian. Both ministers pledged to foster relations between the two countries, besides extending cooperation in the energy sector, said a press release. They showed interest in initiating new joint ventures in the energy sector.

The MoU was finalised after three meetings which were held by technical teams. The project would be inaugurated “at the earliest” and it would ensure uninterrupted supply to Gwadar, it said.

Dastgir also attended a ceremony organised by the Embassy of Pakistan, Tehran to commemorate Pakistan National Day.

“Pakistan and Iran are brother nations who share a common faith, cultural affinity and history,” he said at the event which was attended by officials from Iranian civil and military and diplomats.

He expressed the hope that relations with Iran would strengthen in future. The energy minister extended condolences over the loss of human lives in the earthquake in Iran.

He extended felicitations to the leadership of Iran and Saudi Arabia on the revival of their diplomatic ties.

There was a lot of potential for improvement of bilateral relations between Pakistan and Iran, Iranian Energy Minister Ali Akber Mehrabian said.