Pakistan’s Privatisation Commission has revealed that 11 properties worth Rs14.2 billion, seven of them located overseas, have been handed over to the new owners of Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) as part of the airline’s sale, media reports have stated.
Privatisation Secretary Usman Bajwa shared the figures with the Senate Standing Committee on Privatisation, chaired by PML-N Senator Afnan Ullah Khan, during a session that also touched on the outsourcing of three major airports and the privatisation of power distribution companies. Bajwa told the committee that the Rs14.2 billion in transferred assets exceeds by Rs4 billion the Rs10 billion cash amount the new owners paid for a 75 percent stake in the airline.
The government sold off the entire stake for Rs55 billion in total, though the transfer of the remaining 25 percent and the payment of the outstanding Rs45 billion are still pending.
Out of 44 properties originally tied to PIA, Bajwa mentioned that 11 have now gone to the buyers as part of the deal, while the other 33 remain with the PIA Holding Company. The properties span four cities in Pakistan and locations in India, the Netherlands, Uzbekistan and the United States (US).
Among the domestic properties, the PIA booking office on Mall Road in Rawalpindi is valued at Rs2.3 billion, the sales office on Arbab Road in Peshawar at Rs5.1 billion, the Jinnah Avenue office in Islamabad’s Blue Area at Rs2.4 billion and the Quetta sales office on Shahra Hali at Rs837.4 million.
Overseas, two properties in India were included in the handover, a flat in Mumbai’s Cuffe Parade area worth 112.5 million Indian rupees and two floors of a building in New Delhi valued at 121.92 million Indian rupees. Three properties in Amsterdam were also transferred, valued at 2.1 million euros, 750,000 euros and 583,000 euros respectively. A property in Tashkent worth four billion Uzbekistani som and a residence in Scarsdale, New York, valued at $1.7 million round out the list.
Bajwa told the committee that PIA’s new management intends to make Islamabad airport its main operational hub going forward.
On the Roosevelt Hotel in New York, Bajwa said that the property will be put up for sale by December, with US-based banks already showing interest in acquiring it. He said that the government wants competitive bidding to secure the best possible price, though decisions on the structure of the joint venture and the target investor pool have yet to be finalised.
Regarding the privatisation of power distribution companies, Bajwa said investors from Turkey, China and Saudi Arabia have expressed interest, but their interest is conditional on sector reforms.
He said that prospective buyers are seeking clarity on performance targets, a regulator capable of enforcing them and a level playing field, adding that one investor may bid for multiple distribution companies but can only acquire one.
The deadline for submitting an Expression of Interest is August 7 for the Faisalabad Electric Supply Company, August 21 for Gujranwala, and September 7 for Islamabad.
