Govt set to start fresh round of its PIA privatisation pursuit

The government is set to initiate another process of the national carrier Pakistan International Airlines’ (PIA) privatisation this week.

“The process for the privatisation of PIACL will be started afresh with the hiring of a new Financial Advisor,” an official at the Ministry of Privatisation Commission told media on Monday.

The next Privatisation Commission (PC) Board meeting expected this week will give approval for initiating the hiring of the Financial Advisor for PIACL.

“PC Board meeting is (tentatively) schedule for Tuesday.”

Another official involved in the privatisation process seconded the development.

The development comes after the European Commission and European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) lifted the suspension on the PIA and also issued authorisation to Airblue flights to Europe.

In 2020, the EASA banned the PIA from its most lucrative routes in Europe and Britain after a PIA plane crash in Karachi in 2020 killed nearly 100, followed by a scandal over pilot licenses.

PIA said last week it would resume flights to Europe in January, starting with Paris, after the EU aviation regulator lifted a ban on the national flag carrier.

PIA’s privatisation efforts had been hindered by the EASA ban with potential bidders looking at the airline with reluctance.

In October, Blue World City consortium, only entity to bid for the national flag carrier, refused to match the minimum expectation of the Privatisation Commission of Rs85.03 billion and stuck to its original offer of Rs10 billion for a 60% stake in the PIA, ending the bidding process of the national flag carrier’s privatisation.