Pakistan announced new infrastructure gains in Balochistan this week even as it moved to contain a security scare at one of the province's oldest foreign run mines, underlining how heavily security spending weighs on projects there.

Port Qasim Authority Chairman Rear Admiral (retd) Moazzam Ilyas said the first phase of a $250 million dredging project has begun, allowing vessels with an 18 metre draft to berth at the port. A rail line under the ML1 project is being built from Pipri to Port Qasim, and Reko Diq Mining Company (RDMC) will invest $150 million directly at the port. Reko Diq's copper and gold concentrate will eventually travel over 1,400 km by rail to Port Qasim for export, with production targeted for 2028.

Planning documents show $165 million, nearly 17 percent of a related $995 million railway upgrade tied to Reko Diq, is allocated purely for security. RDMC has also paid a one time grant plus recurring charges to the Frontier Corps Balochistan (South) to guard the project, and absorbed an extra $390,000 in costs after the government fell behind on its own security commitments. Reko Diq's total project cost has risen to $7.7 billion, and lead investor Barrick Mining slowed the project in February, citing escalating security risks, with its review now running until mid 2027.

Financial Times reported that Saindak Metals Limited (SML) warned the Ministry of Energy on June 29 that operations could halt within a month due to disrupted cargo routes, mainly for furnace oil transport. SML Managing Director Raziq Sanjrani rejected the closure claim, saying the mine has run uninterrupted for 25 years, but confirmed transporters had refused certain routes and the company sought government help.

Minister of State for Interior Talal Chaudhry said the ministry received SML's concerns in early July and ordered provincial authorities and security agencies to increase deployment around the mine's installations, personnel and transport routes. No security budget figure was announced for Saindak, unlike the itemised allocation on the Reko Diq rail line.

Balochistan continues to attract capital, but security spending, from Reko Diq's $165 million rail allocation to Saindak's unbudgeted troop deployment, remains the largest and least predictable cost for foreign operators in the province.