PIA to finally be privatised on this date

ISLAMABAD: The federal government has announced the date to privatise the Pakistan International Airlines (PIA).

According to details, the federal executive has set October 1 as the date to privatise the national carrier. The date was announced during a meeting of the Standing Committee on Privatisation was held under the chairmanship of MNA Dr. Farooq Sattar.

Secretary Privatisation Division Jawad Pal confirmed during the briefing that the decision to privatise Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) had been set for October 1, 2024.

The privatization process is expected to be completed by September.

The briefing informed that PIA has incurred a total loss of Rs500 billion in the last eight years, of which Rs80 billion was lost in the last financial year alone. The airline also has a debt burden of Rs825 billion.

Govt announces pre-qualified companies for PIA privatisation

In June, the government had announced a list of pre-qualified companies expected to take over the national carrier.

Following a decisive meeting of the Privatisation Commission Board, chaired by Federal Minister for Privatisation, Investment, and Communications Abdul Aleem Khan, the Ministry of Privatisation confirmed that six companies and consortiums had secured pre-qualification status for the ongoing privatization of PIA.

The pre-qualified entities, comprising Air Blue, Arif Habib Corporation, Blue World City, Fly Jinnah, Pak Ethanol Consortium, and YB Holdings Consortium, were set to participate in the forthcoming bidding process for PIA.

The decision to privatize PIA was initially made during the caretaker regime led by Prime Minister Anwar Ul Haq Kakar, which followed the submission of a comprehensive report by a government-appointed consultant.