ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s federal government on Tuesday said it had approved four parties, including leading business groups, to potentially bid for a majority stake in Pakistan International Airlines (PIA).
Pakistan has been seeking to sell a 51-100 percent stake in the struggling national airline to raise funds and reform cash-draining, state-owned enterprises as envisaged under a $7 billion International Monetary Fund (IMF) programme.
It would be the country’s first major privatisation in nearly two decades.
Among the bidding groups, one is a consortium of major industrial firms, Lucky Cement, Hub Power Holdings, Kohat Cement and Metro Ventures.
Another is led by investment firm Arif Habib Corp and includes fertiliser producer Fatima Fertiliser, private education operator The City School, and real estate firm Lake City Holdings.
Additionally, Fauji Fertiliser Company and Pakistani airline Airblue have been approved to bid for PIA.
“The pre-qualified parties will now proceed to the buy-side due diligence phase,” Privatisation Minister Muhammad Ali said in a statement from his ministry.
The review process is set to last two to two-and-a-half months, with final bidding and negotiations anticipated in the fourth quarter of 2025, Privatisation Minister Ali previously told Reuters.
The privatisation ministry also said that the Cabinet Committee on Privatisation approved the transaction structure for the Roosevelt Hotel located in New York, including options for both outright sale and long-term lease.
“The prequalified parties will now proceed to the buy-side due diligence phase — a critical next step in the transparent and competitive privatisation process of PIACL,” the privatisation commission’s statement said.
From the Roosevelt Hotel, Pakistan is expecting over $100 million as a first payment during this year, Ali previously told Reuters.
Pakistani state-owned enterprises post annual losses of more than Rs800 billion ($2.87 billion), and when subsidies, grants and other support are included, the burden swells beyond Rs1 trillion ($3.59 billion), Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb told parliament while presenting the budget for fiscal year 2025–26 earlier this month.
PIA has been one of the government’s most costly liabilities, which has accumulated over $2.5 billion in losses in roughly a decade and been surviving on repeated bailouts that have weighed heavily on Pakistan’s strained budget.
