By Adnan Hameed TWA _____ The government of Pakistan is considering a proposal to establish a new steel mill in Karachi with Russian cooperation and the both countries agreed to form working groups to move forward on the project. In this regard, Deputy Minister of Industry and Trade Russian Federation Aleksei Gruzdev met with Minister for Industries, Production and National Food Security Rana Tanveer Hussain here on Wednesday. The minister informed that the government has earmarked 700 acres land of Pakistan Steel Mills for establishing a new Steel Mill. He said despite being blessed with considerable reserves of iron ore (estimated reserves of 1887 million tons), Pakistan is forced to import around $2.7 billion of iron and steel. There is perpetual gap between domestic production and demand of iron and steel. For the last year, the gap is estimated at 3.1 million tons, he added. Pakistan’s per capita steel consumption level is below even those of developing countries indicating significant growth potential over medium and long term. He said efficiency of Pakistan’s steel industry is limited as it segmented (600 small units) and based on old inefficient technology. The proposed site is located at Karachi and in closed to Port Qasim that reduces cost of transportation of raw materials. Pakistan's industrial and agricultural experts are set to visit Russia, marking a significant step in strengthening bilateral ties between the two nations. During the meeting, they emphasized on balance trade between both countries. Rana Tanveer stressed the need for modern agricultural machinery to boost crop yields and enhance agricultural productivity. He said the government will provides all the facilities to the Russian investor in the country. Aleksei Gruzdev said that his country will provide modern agricultural machinery to Pakistan in order to boost crop yields and enhance agricultural productivity across the country. The meeting was attended by deputy trade representative of the Russian Federation in Pakistan Denis Nevzorov, secretary for industries and production Saif Anjum, secretary national food security and research Ali Tahir, additional secretary national food security Amir Mohyudin, deputy chief industries and production Abdul Samad and Executive Engineer PSM Engr. Muhammad Shoaib.