| Sept 2015 | 24 km Karakoram Highway realignment inc. five tunnels | “Early‑harvest success” | Project salvaged a route cut by landslide five years earlier – useful, yes, but hardly corridor magic. |
| 13 Nov 2016 | First Chinese convoy reaches Gwadar | “Trade route operational” | One‑off publicity stunt; regular traffic still minuscule. |
| Jul 2017 | Sahiwal 1,320 MW coal plant online | “Load‑shedding cured” | Imported coal locks Pakistan into dollar‑denominated fuel bills. |
| Mar 2018 | Ground‑breakings at Karot hydro & Thar lignite mine | “Green and indigenous shift” | Hydropower faces tariff haggling; Thar coal is anything but green. |
| Oct 2018 | Saudi Arabia courted as third partner, pledges US $20 bn | “Broader investor base” | Riyadh’s refinery still on the drawing board; cash yet to flow. |
| Nov 2019 | Multan–Sukkur Motorway opens (392 km) | “North‑south artery complete” | Toll revenue nowhere near debt‑service obligations. |
| 25 Oct 2020 | Lahore Orange Line Metro launches | “Modern mass transit” | Operating subsidy drains Punjab coffers; ridership below forecasts. |
| Nov 2020 | ML‑1 railway framework approved (US $6.8 bn) | “Phase 2 unlocked” | Financing deadlocked four years and counting. |
| Jul 2023 | ‘Decade of CPEC’ fete: 6 GW, 510 km highways, 192 k jobs | “Delivering prosperity” | Debt stock to China hits US $23 bn; IMF flags sustainability risk. |
| 2024‑25 | Phase 3 concept floated (tech, mining, regional links) | “Gateway to Central Asia” | Security incidents and foreign‑exchange crisis stall momentum. |
