PIA privatization on the cards as timeline finalized: Details inside

ISLAMABAD - The caretaker regime finalized a clear timeline for privatizing the national carrier of Pakistan currently facing a financial crunch.

A meeting of the Privatisation Commission discussed the privatization of Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) on Tuesday and agreed on a clear timeline for the purpose but fell short of revealing the timeline.

The meeting presided over by the newly roped-in Minister for Privatisation Fawad Hasan Fawad was held to meet the target set by the caretaker prime minister Anwar Ul Haq Kakar and the federal cabinet for privatisation of the carrier.

Fawad Hassan Fawad also held detailed discussions with different stakeholders, including the senior management of PIA and the aviation division with an aim to restructure PIA, finally leading to its privatisation process.

It bears mentioning that the Cabinet Committee on Privatisation (CCoP) had decided to form a technical committee on September 6 for the resolution of bottlenecks in the way of privatization and restructuring of PIA.

The committee had also asked the aviation division to work with the privatization commission to present a detailed action plan to the CCoP with a clear timeline framework in a sequence, DawnNews reported.

The national carrier - which was once seen by international carriers as a success story - was on the brink of grounding 15 planes recently.  

PIA's challenges worsened after it was reported a few weeks ago that the supply of spare parts to the carrier could be suspended over cash flow problems.

There have been demands for privatizing the national carrier due to its economic nonviability. Former Aviation Minister Khawaja Saad Rafique also stressed the importance of privatizing the carrier or else it would have to shut operations.

In the final days of the PDM regime, it was also decided to privatize loss-making Pakistan International Airlines during a meeting of the Cabinet Committee on Privatization chaired by then Finance Minister Ishaq Dar.

The committee “after deliberation decided to include Pakistan International Airlines Co. Ltd. in the list of active privatization projects of the ongoing privatization program, following an amendment in the law by the Parliament,” a finance ministry statement had said.