White Pearl City Gwadar International

06/09/2026

30/08/2026

In another groundbreaking development, Gwadar Development Authority (GDA) has acquired 750 acres of land for the construction of Gwadar Eastbay Expressway Phase-II, starting from New Gwadar International Airport (NGIA) to Gwadar Port.

The purchase of land has taken affect last week under Gwadar master plan through public sector development programme 2026-2027.

Gwadar Eastbay Expressway Phase-II was approved during the 8th Joint Working Group (JWG) on Gwadar under CPEC in 2025. Under Public Sector Development Program (PSDP), federal government has also allocated Rs 200 million for the construction of Eastbay Expressway Phase II.

Secretary Ministry of Planning Development & Special Initiatives, being the convener of the JWG on Gwadar chaired the meeting. PC-I of the project was already approved from CDWP (Central Development Working party) for funding through Grant-in-Aid.

Its total estimated cost is Rs 30.13 billion, 95 percent financed through Chinese grant-in-aid under CPEC. China Harbour Engineering Company Ltd (CHEC) will undertake the construction of the expressway.

The second phase of the expressway is planned as a 13.8-kilometer, six-lane (four paved lanes) dual carriageway. It will directly link the New Gwadar International Airport (NGIA) with the existing Eastbay Expressway, enabling smooth, high-speed cargo transport to Gwadar Port. The plan also includes supporting infrastructure like a toll plaza, drainage, lighting, fencing, and security towers. This road project is seen as vital to enhancing Gwadar’s role in logistics and improving port operations.

The Eastbay Expressway Phase I had already completed and operated on June 03, 2022. It is a six-lane road around 19 kilometre long, as the main artery of Gwadar Port through which the entire traffic of the port flow realizing the dream of making Gwadar logistic and economic hub of the region in line with objectives of CPEC.

Eastbay Expressway Phase I cost USD 168 million and it provides primary connectivity of the Port and its Free Zone I and Free Zone II with Makran Coastal Highway (N-10) and Motorway 8 (CPEC’s Western route) for smooth logistic transportation of import, export, and transit goods to Khujrab, border of China. Gwadar Eastbay Expressway Phase I was approved by ECNEC on January 12, 2015. Contract Agreement was signed between GPA & CCCC on September 24 2017.

03/08/2026

Gwadar Port has handled roughly 200,000 tonnes of transit breakbulk cargo over the past three months, emerging as a stable and reliable alternative maritime corridor, said Yu Bo, Chairman of China Overseas Ports Holding Company (Pvt.) Ltd. (COPHC), at the Pakistan Logistics & Shipping Summit 2026 on July 30.

Yu Bo noted that global trade and supply chains are undergoing profound changes. Amid shifting Middle East geopolitics and growing shipping safety concerns in the Strait of Hormuz, Gwadar Port, strategically located on the Arabian Sea adjacent to the waterway, has seen its value keep climbing.

He added that in the first half of 2026, with support from Pakistan’s Ministry of Maritime Affairs and the Gwadar Port Authority, COPHC rolled out a package of trade incentives and facilitation measures, achieving solid operational progress at the port.

Under the Transit of Goods Through Pakistan Order 2026 issued by the Ministry of Commerce on April 25, 2026, six overland transit routes leading to the Pakistan-Iran border were launched. Among them, the 87-km Gwadar-Gabd corridor forges a direct land link between Pakistan and Iran, paving the way for seamless transit transport across Pakistan, Iran, and landlocked Central Asian states. With ongoing upgrades to customs facilitation, road networks, and multimodal infrastructure, Gwadar Port is evolving into a key overseas access point for Central Asian countries to reach international markets.