America Put $1.25 Billion Into a Mountain in Pakistan
Beneath the desert of Balochistan, Pakistan, sits Reko Diq — one of the largest undeveloped copper-gold deposits on Earth, holding an estimated $60 billion in metal. Pakistan denied the mine's license in 2011, and a World Bank tribunal hit it with a $5.9 billion award. In 2022 Pakistan settled: the fine was erased and mining giant Barrick returned for 50% of the project. Meanwhile, China's state-owned MCC has been pulling copper out of Saindak, just 50 km away, for over 20 years — and China's trade corridor through Pakistan ends at Gwadar port. In late 2025, America answered: the US Export-Import Bank approved $1.25 billion for Reko Diq. The catch: project costs just jumped 79% to $7.7 billion, and the US financing package is being re-finalized. First copper is slated for 2028. Follow Money Maps for more geopolitics, mapped. #Pakistan #RekoDiq #Copper #Gold #China #USA #CriticalMinerals #Geopolitics #MoneyMaps #Shorts
Transcript
Under this Pakistani desert: over sixty billion dollars of copper and gold. Blocking it cost Pakistan a historic fine. In 2011, Pakistan denied the license. The tribunal's fine: five point nine billion. So Pakistan settled, and mining giant Barrick takes half. China has mined copper fifty kilometers away, for twenty years. Its trade corridor ends at Gwadar. America's answer: one point two five billion, for this mountain. The catch: costs jumped to seven point seven billion, and the American money is under review. First copper: twenty twenty eight. Follow Money Maps.
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