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ISLAMABAD: American multinational company Chevron has invested $30 million to set up an automated lubricants blending plant in Pakistan, the petroleum ministry announced on Thursday, terming such investments as vital for economic growth.

Chevron is a US energy and petroleum corporation, considered one of the largest oil companies in the world. The head of the company’s Pakistan chapter, Ahmad Zahid, met Pakistan’s Petroleum Minister Ali Pervaiz Malik. The two discussed the corporation’s ongoing operations and future plans in Pakistan, the petroleum ministry said in a statement.

“Mr. Zahid apprised the Minister that Chevron, a leading US-based multinational oil company, has recently invested $30 million to establish a state-of-the-art, fully automated lubricants blending plant in Pakistan,” the statement said.

Zahid said the investment showcases Chevron’s long-term commitment to Pakistan. The Chevron official said his company was currently selling approximately 70 million liters of high-quality lubricants per annum in Pakistan, serving a wide range of industrial and automotive customers.

Malik welcomed the investment, commending the company’s confidence in the Pakistani economy and its role in enhancing the country’s oil sector with advanced technology and international standards.

“The Government of Pakistan is committed to providing a conducive environment for businesses to thrive,” Malik was quoted as saying by the ministry.

He assured full support and facilitation to Chevron, noting that such investments are vital for economic growth, technology transfer, and creating employment opportunities.

Pakistan has been eyeing foreign partnerships with different countries and their companies, particularly those in the US, in mines and minerals, cryptocurrency and oil and gas sectors.

The South Asian country hopes to bolster its fragile $350 billion economy through lucrative partnerships with foreign governments and multinationals as it hopes to wiggle out of a prolonged macroeconomic crisis.

ISLAMABAD: Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Thursday met Qatar’s Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani in Doha, stressing Muslim unity as Qatar called for a collective regional response to an Israeli strike on its capital.

Sharif’s day-long trip came two days after Israeli warplanes bombed a residential building in the Qatari capital on Sept. 9, killing at least six people including a Qatari security guard. Israel said the raid targeted Hamas officials, but Qatar denounced it as a “criminal attack” and “flagrant violation” of international law.

Speaking to CNN on Wednesday, Qatari Prime Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani said Israel had carried out “state terrorism” and “killed any hope” for hostage negotiations in Gaza. Qatar has been hosting Hamas’s political bureau and working with the United States and Egypt to mediate ceasefire and prisoner-exchange talks since the war erupted last October. Al Thani said Doha was now reassessing its role and consulting with regional partners on a collective response, with an upcoming Arab-Islamic summit in Doha expected to decide next steps.

“The [Pakistan] prime minister emphasized that Israel’s brazen aggression must be stopped and stressed that the Muslim ummah needs unity in the face of Israeli provocations,” Sharif’s office said in a statement after the talks with the Emir.

Calling the assault “an open violation of Qatar’s sovereignty and regional integrity,” Sharif assured Sheikh Tamim of Pakistan’s full support against what he described as an “unjustified provocation.”

Sharif praised Qatar’s “responsible and constructive” role in Gaza mediation and warned that Israel’s actions were clearly aimed at destabilizing the region and undermining diplomatic and humanitarian efforts.

The premier said Pakistan had joined Qatar in requesting an emergency UN Security Council meeting on the attack and welcomed Doha’s decision to host an extraordinary Arab-Islamic summit on Sept. 15, noting Islamabad’s readiness to co-sponsor and co-convene the gathering with the Organization of Islamic Cooperation.

The planned summit comes as the Gaza war continues to drive regional instability.

More than 64,600 people have been killed in Gaza since Israel launched its military campaign in October 2023, according to Palestinian health authorities.