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Referring to a news item titled, ‘PC misses sell-off targets for 2007’
appeared in daily, News on January 17, 2008, a spokesman of the Privatisation
Commission while terming the report as an example of ignorance of the facts,
clarified that Pakistan has achieved the record target of US $ 2 billion
privatisation proceeds through the privatisation of public sector entities in
FY 2006-07.
He disclosed that during the current year (2007-08) from July 2007 to November
2007 an amount of US $ 446 million equivalent to Pak Rs.27 billion have been
received through privatisation proceeds by the Privatisation Commission.
The proceeds relate to UBL GDRs (US $ 85 million), HBL IPO (US $ 201 million),
M/s Etisalat tranche (received on 7th of November 2007) for PTCL privatisation
(US $ 133.217 million) and Rs.1.6 billion from other privatisation proceeds.
He further stated that the total target for the year 2007 -08 was around US $
2 billion and hopefully this target would be achieved through GDR of NBP, HBL,
KAPCO and privatisation of NPCC, SME Bank, PTDC Motels, HEC, and HPFL.
Giving the details of the ongoing transactions, the spokesman stated that
National Power construction company (NPCC), Small & Medium Enterprise Bank,
motels and restaurants of PTDC, Heavy Electrical Complex and Hazara Phosphate
and Fertilizers, Pakistan Machine Tool Factory etc were at an advanced stage
of privatisation as EOIs for most of these transactions have been received and
now the next phase to receive Requests for Statement of Qualification (RSOQ)
was being processed while the work on GDRs of HBL and NBP were also targeted
before the close of the current Financial Year, he added.
The spokesman further explained that besides the ongoing transactions the
Privatisation Commission has an ambitious program ahead, which include PMDC
(salt & Coal mines), Services International hotel, Printing Corporation of
Pakistan, FESCO, PESCO, JPC, IPO of PSML, GDR of PPL.
Explaining the details of PTCL and KESC privatisations as failure, he said
that there were visible improvements in both the transactions, which were
gradual and would become more apparent with the passage of time. Regarding
PTCL he observed that this was the biggest ever transaction in the history of
Privatisation in Pakistan as the entity had been sold for US $ 2.59 billion
and an upfront payment of US $ 1.4 billion was made at the time of sale which
was higher than the next higher bid. So far a total amount of US $ 1.8 billion
have been received by the Privatisation Commission the spokesman concluded.