A Pakistani official called for closer cooperation between China and Pakistan in the energy industry on Tuesday.

Syed Naveed Qamar, Pakistan's Federal Minister for Water and Power, made the remarks at a press conference held at the Pakistani Embassy in Beijing.

Noting Pakistan's current lack of power, Qamar said the two countries should have more cooperation in areas such as hydroelectric power, nuclear energy, oil and gas.

Qamar was in Beijing to chair the first Pakistan-China Joint Energy Working Group (JEWG) meetings, which took place on Aug. 1 and 2.

He spoke highly of the meetings, saying the trip was "successful."

He said the two sides not only discussed policies, but also touched on specific projects that Chinese companies are working on in Pakistan and how both of the two countries can make efforts to facilitate them.

The two countries agreed to promote a long-term meeting mechanism for bilateral energy cooperation, he said, adding that Pakistan is eyeing more investment from Chinese companies.

The JEWG meetings were announced in a joint statement issued during Premier Wen Jiabao's visit to Pakistan last year. According to the statement, the two countries agreed to boost cooperation in conventional energy, renewable energy and nuclear energy for civilian use.

By the end of 2010, Chinese enterprises had signed contracts with Pakistan worth a total of 19.87 billion dollars. China's direct investment in Pakistan hit 1.36 billion dollars, while Pakistan's investment in China reached 57.38 million dollars, according to the Chinese Commerce Ministry.

(From CRI English)