Karachi Marble City: Pakistan’s First Stone Park
Karachi Marble City, Pakistan’s first dedicated industrial park for marble and granite, is being set up in Karachi over 300 acres along the Northern Bypass, at an estimated cost of $250 million.
Sindh Senior Minister Sharjeel Inam Memon announced the project at its pre-launch ceremony at a local hotel in Karachi. He said it would create new investment opportunities, promote industrial activity and generate employment.
Karachi Marble City: processing stone at home, for export
The project will process marble and granite reserves found in Sindh and other parts of the country with modern industrial techniques. The aim is to produce finished, high-quality goods for export markets, instead of shipping raw stone abroad.
Memon said the average price of land in Marble City was being set at about Rs25 million per acre. ARY News, which also covered the announcement, reported the proposed price range as Rs20 million to Rs25 million per acre, with land offered at subsidised and affordable rates. Investors who cannot pay in one go will be able to pay in instalments.
The formal inauguration will be performed by Pakistan Peoples Party Chairman Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari and Sindh Chief Minister Murad Ali Shah. Memon said the project should be formally inaugurated within the next two months.
What investors will get
Special Assistant to the Chief Minister on Investment and Public-Private Partnership Qasim Naveed Qamar said the project covered more than 300 acres and was being developed under a public-private partnership framework. Registration of investors and industrialists will begin next month, with further facilities to follow.
He said the Sindh government was working on a proposal to provide electricity at Rs20 per unit for its projects, particularly in Dhabeji and Khairpur. Efforts were also under way to offer industrialists in Marble City power at rates lower than those charged by K-Electric, make machinery available on rent, and provide access to the world’s most advanced equipment.
Memon said investors would get modern facilities through a one-window service available on the Excise and Taxation Department’s website. He added that machinery imported for new industrial projects would be exempt from customs duties.
He said Sindh’s Khairpur Economic Zone had gained international recognition, while the Dhabeji Economic Zone was a major step for Pakistan’s economy and the only economic zone included in the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor. He noted that Pakistan’s commitments under the IMF programme had restricted the establishment of additional economic zones.
An idea sixteen years in the making
The Marble City concept is not new. In 2010, the Sindh government promised 300 acres of land on the Northern Bypass to the Pakistan Stone Development Company by May that year, with a memorandum of understanding signed between the Sindh Board of Investment and the company. The plan then was to complete the city by mid-2012 and lift marble exports past $500 million by 2015.
That version never materialised. The 2026 pre-launch revives the same site and the same promise, this time with a public-private partnership structure, subsidised land and a formal inauguration date in view.
The case for finishing it is strong. The marble industry sits in a global value chain worth about $60 billion a year, and the project is expected to attract more than 50 enterprises, according to the Sindh Economic Zones Management Company. Karachi’s marble industry already handles about 90 per cent of the country’s marble exports, so a purpose-built park would add value where the trade already exists.
Sindh has been signing industrial deals at pace. The province recently signed 34 memorandums with Chinese firms in Shanghai, and Rs48 billion in grants went to Sindh universities. The public-private partnership model is also being used for roads, including four PPP projects on the M-10, Mansehra, Chilas and Guru Nanak Expressway, while a Rs15 billion dairy plant by Interloop shows private capital moving into processing industries.
The announcement was reported by Dawn, ARY News and Business Recorder.
Frequently asked questions
What is Karachi Marble City?
It is Pakistan’s first dedicated industrial park for marble and granite, being developed over 300 acres along the Northern Bypass in Karachi under a public-private partnership, at an estimated cost of $250 million.
How much will land cost investors?
The average price is being set at about Rs25 million per acre, with the proposed range at Rs20 million to Rs25 million. Investors who cannot pay at once will be able to pay in instalments.
When will Marble City be inaugurated?
The formal inauguration will be performed by PPP Chairman Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari and Sindh Chief Minister Murad Ali Shah, and is expected within the next two months.
What facilities will investors get?
Modern industrial facilities, a one-window service through the Excise and Taxation Department’s website, machinery on rent, access to advanced equipment, and efforts to supply electricity below K-Electric rates. Machinery imported for new projects will be exempt from customs duties.
Has Marble City been announced before?
Yes. In 2010, the Sindh government promised the same 300-acre site on the Northern Bypass to the Pakistan Stone Development Company, with completion planned by mid-2012. That version never materialised, and the 2026 pre-launch revives the project.
