PIA being privatized under government's policy, senate informed
Farhat Hussain Khan, Adviser to the Pakistani Prime Minister on
Aviation, has emphasized that the process of privatization of Pakistan
International Airlines (PIA) aligns with the government's policy to privatize
underperforming entities.
Responding to inquiries during the Question Hour in Senate session
in Islamabad, Khan assured transparency in the privatization of PIA through
open tender procedures. He disclosed that the initial phase would involve
privatizing PIA as a flight entity, with decisions regarding other properties
to be determined later by the Privatization Commission.
PIA's
financial matters to be transferred to Privatization Commission
Addressing the outsourcing of airports nationwide, Khan mentioned
the Transaction Advisory Services Agreement (TASA) between the Pakistan Civil
Aviation Authority and the International Finance Corporation (IFC), a World
Bank Group subsidiary. Approved by the Federal Cabinet in accordance with the
Public Private Partnership Authority (P3A) Act and relevant regulations, the
agreement aims to outsource operations at three international airports in
Islamabad, Karachi, and Lahore.
Khan highlighted that the IFC would serve as a transactional
advisor for airport outsourcing, with Islamabad International Airport
identified as the initial airport for outsourcing. The outsourcing period for
Islamabad International Airport is set at 15 years, with time frames for the
remaining airports to be determined by the Federal Government based on an
IFC-prepared study.
Committee
established to expedite privatization of Pakistan International Airlines (PIA)
The Adviser assured that critical services, including the Air
Traffic Control Tower, Rescue and Fire Fighting Services, and Air Navigation
services, would remain under the control of the Pakistan Civil Aviation
Authority despite the outsourcing of specific airport components.
Regarding financial aspects, Khan outlined a fixed initial payment
of US $100 million required from the successful bidder for Islamabad
International Airport. Financial details for Karachi and Lahore airports will
be finalized based on IFC's analysis.
Pakistan
to outsource operations of three key airports to cut costs
Responding to another query, Khan informed the Senate that while
PIA recorded operational profit in Jan-June 2023, it incurred a net loss of Rs
61.6 billion as of June 30, 2023, attributed to high financing costs and
exchange losses. The accumulated liabilities of PIA were reported to be Rs. 809
billion as of the same date.
Source: https://www.urdupoint.com/