Prime Minister Raja Pervaiz Ashraf said on Thursday that despite fresh bailout package, turning around the loss-making Pakistan Steel Mills (PSM) remained a daunting task for the new management due to highly competitive market.
The premier’s comments came 48 hours after the Economic Coordination Committee of the Cabinet (ECC) approved new injection of Rs8.6 billion to the mills. The PSM which was in profit till 2008 has so far accumulated Rs71.3 billion in losses.
While chairing a high level meeting on Thursday to review the new business plan of PSM, the prime minister expressed his confidence in the new management, as its CEO Muhammad Javed was heading the PSM when it was earning profits a few years ago.
“I am very keen to see PSM developing into a self-reliant and profitable national enterprise and I am sure that it will stand on its feet after fresh structural reforms,” he said.
The PSM chief briefed the meeting that in the first phase, the capacity of the PSM would be increased up to 55% and the management’s target is to attain the 80% of the production by the end of 2013.
CEO further informed that the management’s preference is to use local iron ore for steel production and major chunk would come from Balochistan.
Published in The Express Tribune, July 27th, 2012.
COMMENTS (8)
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@Allah Ditta Pakistani: But Razzak Dawood was made minister during the reign of a general.
pakistan steel has already sucked more than 25 billion from poor people of pakistan nothing will get better with another 14.6billion except betterment of corrupt CBA,matriculate officers(fitters,welders,machine oprators,turners etc who have been promoted to Deputy Manager grade 18 by corrupt management,sifarshi engineers) and corrupt high ups in mill and in ISLAMABAD.
Your trying to breath life into a dead horse - it's an energy intense business (which your country is short on) that doesn't have the management nor capital to make it successful.
@Mohd Butt:
Yes....there is one! whether you agree or now...they have the strength in the assembly. Bringing all culprits together under the same umbrella (assembly) is a challenge.
Is there any challenge majors or miner Ppp governament has not failed? The collected insult is not enough that asking more? Sell it, to any Pakistani businessman, sooner the better is the case please. it will suck a lot of good money, and you simply don't have the skill to fix the problem.
@ Syed Nayyar Uddin Ahmad,
They don't want to revive PSM, its' only an eye wash, Making Razzak Dawood Chairman and CEO of PSM will result in unemployment of a retired General. Why don't you understand it's Pakistan's economy.
Why bailout? As if we have a lot of cash to spare. Let it go down if it can't perform. Learn from mistakes of others.. Bailouts won't work n if bailed out it will never perform because next bailout will be at the corner
Make Razzak Dawood the chairman & CEO, with the powers of a minister, of Pak Steel, if the government wants a turnaround of Pak Steel.