Riyadh: Pakistan and the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia on Monday agreed to deepen bilateral cooperation in the energy sector, with a particular focus on power transmission, grid modernization, digital transformation and investment opportunities.

A high-level Pakistani delegation led by Minister for Energy (Power Division) Sardar Awais Ahmad Khan Leghari held a meeting with the Kingdom's Energy Working Group in Riyadh to discuss collaboration in the evolving energy landscape.

The Pakistani delegation met H.E. Eng. Nasser Al-Qahtani, Assistant Minister of Energy for Electricity Affairs, during the Joint Working Group on Energy session. H.E. Mohammed Alibrahim, Assistant Minister of Energy for Oil and Gas, and H.E. Majed Aloutaibi, Deputy Minister for Oil and Gas, also participated in the discussions.

During the meeting, Minister Leghari highlighted Pakistan's ongoing power sector reforms aimed at improving efficiency, strengthening institutional governance, accelerating digital transformation and ensuring financial sustainability. He emphasized the government's commitment to creating an investor-friendly environment for private sector participation and foreign investment.

The Minister briefed the Saudi side on investment opportunities in Pakistan's power transmission sector, stressing the need for expansion and modernization of the national grid to meet rising electricity demand and facilitate greater integration of clean energy resources.

He also highlighted Pakistan's digitalization initiatives, particularly the rollout of Smart Metering and Advanced Metering Infrastructure (AMI), describing them as key measures to reduce technical and commercial losses, improve operational efficiency and enhance consumer services.

Reaffirming the longstanding brotherly relations between Pakistan and Saudi Arabia, Minister Leghari invited the Saudi Energy Working Group to visit Pakistan to witness ongoing reforms and explore investment opportunities in transmission infrastructure, digitalization and smart utility technologies. He assured full government support and facilitation for Saudi investors.

Both sides agreed to maintain close engagement and transform the discussions into practical cooperation aimed at promoting sustainable economic growth, energy security and regional collaboration.