PIA privatisation: Due diligence underway, bids expected in Q4

The National Assembly's Standing Committee on Privatisation, chaired by MNA Farooq Sattar, discussed the update on the privatisation of Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) on Monday. Officials said the due diligence process for the national carrier is already taking place.

During the briefing, the Privatisation Commission said it aims to issue bids for PIA in the last quarter of the current year. Overall, there are four consortia currently involved in the due diligence phase, while five groups had submitted Statements of Qualification in total. One consortium was not shortlisted, as they failed to meet the necessary criteria.

The officials told lawmakers that the bidding companies are being facilitated to visit PIA facilities. They assured the Committee that the privatisation process would be completely transparent and would avoid risking unfairness with the bidding companies. "We cannot favour any one bidder, as that would then jeopardise the complete privatisation exercise," the officials emphasised.

Of the interested parties, Airblue is seen as the best contender because of its experience in the aviation sector, while Fauji Fertiliser was clarified to be operating as an independent commercial entity.

Farooq Sattar noted that PIA's head office has transferred to Islamabad, but most of the due diligence is taking place in Karachi, where the interested parties are based. He also appreciated Privatisation Adviser Muhammad Ali for his professional handling of the process.

The committee directed the Privatisation Ministry to submit a detailed progress report in the next update.