Pakistan government received only one bid out of six qualified contenders for a stake in the national carrier, Pakistan International Airlines (PIA), Bloomberg reported on October 29, citing Ahsan Ishaq, spokesman for the Privatisation Ministry.
Initially, six companies were shortlisted to bid for PIA shares, including Airblue Ltd., Arif Habib Corporation Ltd., Fly Jinnah (owned by Air Arabia), Y.B. Holdings Pvt., Pak Ethanol Pvt., and real estate consortium Blue World City. Out of the shortlisted ones, most chose not to participate in what has been one of Pakistan’s major attempts at privatization.
The only confirmed bidder, Blue World City, a real estate firm, stated on October 30 that it had completed the necessary steps to join the final bidding process for PIA. Blue World City’s chairman, Saad Nazir, confirmed in a message to Reuters that his company had met the deadline and submitted earnest money, but he did not specify the amount.
Ishaq, confirmed that the sole bidder submitted the required “earnest money” by Tuesday’s deadline, though he did not reveal the identity of the party. The ministry, however, has not commented on the transaction beyond business hours.
This privatisation push is part of Pakistan’s commitment to the International Monetary Fund (IMF), which has provided the country with a 37-month, $7-billion bailout package to support economic reforms.
The government has long sought to privatize the loss-making airline, aiming to address PIA’s mounting debt issues through external investment.
Talks are reportedly underway with international stakeholders, including Chinese and Turkish aviation firms, as Blue World City aims to broaden its aviation and infrastructure footprint.
Blue World City’s consortium includes Blue World Aviation and IRIS Communication Limited, and Nazir mentioned that his group is also exploring an opportunity to manage operations at Islamabad International Airport, which the government plans to outsource.
Pakistan has previously offered a stake ranging from 51% to full ownership in PIA to attract investors and meet IMF-backed reform goals.
[…] to sell a 51-100% stake in PIA to raise funds encountered challenges after the final bidding round received only a single bid of Rs10 billion ($36 million), well below the minimum […]