Pakistan scrambles for relief on $15bn energy debt owed to China

Source: Nikkei Asia

ISLAMABAD -- Cash-strapped Pakistan is moving to restructure more than $15 billion in power-plant debt owed to Chinese energy producers, in a move that threatens to dampen Beijing's appetite for future investment.

The South Asian nation is already on the hook for about $1.9 billion in unpaid operating bills at 20 China-backed power plants across the country. Most were built under the $50 billion China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC), a key part of Beijing's globe-spanning Belt and Road Initiative (BRI).