Business Desk 
Dec 25, 2025
An image of Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) plane preparing to land at Islamabad airport in Islamabad on February 24, 2007. — Reuters
Arif Habib Consortium, now joined by Fauji Fertiliser Company Limited, has acquired a 75% majority stake in Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) for Rs135 billion, winning the government’s privatisation auction.
The consortium said the partnership will provide financial support and corporate expertise, with Fauji Fertiliser also joining the management structure.
PIA privatisation
In a statement on Thursday, the consortium said it will invest Rs125 billion in the first year to upgrade the ground operations and overall services. The group plans to also increase PIA’s operational aircraft from 18 to 62, indicating a massive expansion of the national carrier’s fleet.
Privatisation Adviser to Prime Minister Muhammad Ali told Reuters that the new owner is expected to take charge by April, subject to approvals from the Privatisation Commission and the cabinet. Contract signing is likely within two weeks, with financial close set after a 90-day period to meet regulatory and legal requirements.
This would be Pakistan’s first major privatisation in nearly two decades, aimed at injecting fresh capital into PIA rather than just transferring ownership. “We did not want a situation where the government sells the airline, takes its money, and the company still collapses,” Ali said.
Bidding received a competitive response from the Lucky Cement Consortium and Airblue, which continuously took part. Lucky Cement raised its bid to Rs134 billion, but Arif Habib shot back with Rs135 billion to seal the win.
The privatisation has been opposed by the opposition alliance Tehreek Tahaffuz Aiyeen-e-Pakistan (TTAP), which regarded the process as “hasty and opaque”.
TTAP said PIA is a national asset created over decades and warned that any transaction without parliamentary oversight or public mandate would be morally and politically unacceptable.
