The government will seek new expressions of interest (EoI) for the sale of Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) later this month, following the national carrier’s first annual profit in over 20 years, a government adviser announced on Thursday.
Efforts to privatize PIA were hindered by unresolved issues regarding taxation and the airline's balance sheet. Muhammad Ali, government adviser on privatization, stated that these issues have now been addressed.
The new EoI is expected to be published by the end of April 2025, with plans to complete the privatization before the end of the year.
In addition to PIA, the government has also initiated the privatization process for power distribution companies, marking it as a high priority. Ali noted that some companies originally scheduled for the second phase would now be included in the first phase of privatization.
The government has been attempting to privatize PIA, aiming to offload a 51-100% stake in the debt-laden airline as part of reforms under a $7 billion International Monetary Fund programme. However, a previous attempt last year failed when only one bid was received, far below the $300 million asking price.
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