Pakistan: National carrier PIA sold to private consortium; Rs 135 billion deal sealed – The Times of India

Pakistan’s government on Tuesday sold its national carrier PIA for Rs 135 billion to a consortium led by investment firm Arif Habib. The sale, organized through a bidding process in Islamabad, marks the largest transaction in Pakistan’s history. The aim is to revive the once prestigious airline, which was in trouble due to years of mismanagement, as reported by PTI.Three companies had bid in this auction, namely Arif Habib, Lucky Cement and Airblue. Arif Habib won this auction after an aggressive bidding process against Lucky Cement. The successful auction cost of Rs 135 billion was much higher than the government’s reference price of Rs 100 billion. Airblue has quoted the lowest amount at Rs 26.5 billion.The sale involves 75% of PIA’s shares at this stage, and the successful bidder has 90 days to purchase the remaining 25%. A greater share of the money resulting from the sale of the national carrier, 92.5%, will be invested in the airline, while the remaining 7.5% will be paid to the government.The deal requires Arif Habib to invest another Rs 80 billion in PIA over the next five years. This comes after the government took over the airline’s massive debt of Rs 654 billion last year to make sales more attractive.Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif praised the transparent nature of the sale. “It will be the largest transaction ever in the history of Pakistan,” he said at a federal cabinet meeting.The entire bidding process was broadcast live on local TV channels. This successful sale came after a failed attempt last year when the airline failed to achieve the desired price.The privatization of PIA marks the end of an era for what was once a premier airline. Years of poor management had seriously damaged the quality and reputation of the service, eventually forcing the government to sell it to private investors.