Pakistan turns to US EXIM financing for PIA, Reko Diq and refineries

Pakistan's talks with the United States Export-Import Bank have opened a financing channel for several large projects, with aircraft purchases, refinery upgrades and the Reko Diq mining venture at different stages of discussion. The clearest outcome so far is $1.25 billion in US EXIM financing for Reko Diq, which Pakistan has welcomed. Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb has pointed to the mining project's importance for Pakistan's future exports and to the cost of delays.

US EXIM is the official export credit agency of the United States. Its role is to support American exports by providing financing, loan guarantees and insurance where private-sector lenders cannot or will not. Foreign buyers can therefore finance purchases of US goods, equipment and services, which is why Boeing aircraft feature in the discussions: if Pakistan International Airlines buys Boeing planes, EXIM can potentially finance the transaction, assessing the creditworthiness of the airline or lessee. Pakistan has its own EXIM Bank, a separate institution established to support Pakistani exports, while US EXIM's mandate is to support US exports and American jobs.

According to Deputy Prime Minister Ishaq Dar, Pakistan aims to double bilateral trade with the United States to $20 billion over five years, compared with the $9.4 billion reached in the last fiscal year. He described the US as Pakistan's largest single-country export market and called for greater US investment in technology, minerals and energy. The EXIM discussions run alongside a separate Pakistani request for a $10 billion Exchange Stabilisation Support Facility from the US Treasury. Aurangzeb has said that request is not a conventional loan or credit line but is intended to strengthen foreign-exchange stability and move Pakistan towards market-based financing, and that nothing had been finalised at the time of his comments.

On aviation, Pakistan has sought US EXIM financing for PIA's planned aircraft purchases, particularly Boeing 787 Dreamliners, along with financing for aircraft and engines. Aurangzeb has also raised the need for spare parts to bring grounded Boeing 777s back into service. The two sides agreed to continue work on a broader cooperation framework while prioritising specific transactions, including possible financing for aircraft pre-delivery payments. The government says it is not buying the aircraft itself; Finance Ministry adviser Khurram Schehzad said no sovereign guarantee or taxpayer-funded government loan had been announced. EXIM could finance the aircraft and assess PIA or its lessee, meaning a sovereign guarantee would not automatically be required.

Refinery modernisation is another area where Pakistan is seeking potential US EXIM support, though the discussions cover upgrades that are being explored rather than a completed financing package. Taken together, the talks are not a single new US loan to Pakistan but the development of a financing channel linking Pakistani projects with American companies, equipment, technology and capital, alongside Islamabad's broader push to expand economic ties with Washington.