ISLAMABAD: Fauji Fertilizer Company (FFC) has officially joined the Arif Habib Consortium, which successfully acquired a 75% stake in Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) during an auction held earlier this week.
The consortium highlighted FFC’s inclusion as a critical step for strengthening the airline’s financial recovery and leveraging its management expertise to boost operations. Under the agreement, FFC is set to play a key role in driving strategic improvements in PIA’s management and operational execution.
As part of their plans, the consortium has committed to investing Rs125 billion in the first year. This investment will primarily focus on upgrading PIA’s ground operations and enhancing overall efficiency to ensure better service delivery.
Earlier in the week, the Arif Habib Consortium emerged as the successful bidder by securing PIA’s majority stake with a final offer of Rs135 billion.
The announcement followed the completion of an intense second and final bidding phase conducted under the supervision of the Privatisation Commission in Islamabad.
Prominent government officials, including the Federal Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb, alongside the Ministers for Information and Privatisation, attended the live-streamed bidding process, alongside representatives from the participating bidders.
The bidding session commenced with a base price of Rs115 billion. Following a competitive series of offers, Lucky Cement raised its initial bid to Rs115.5 billion, which was countered by Arif Habib at Rs116 billion. In a dynamic exchange of rapid increases, bids escalated further, with Lucky Cement submitting Rs116.75 billion and later Rs120.25 billion.
Before the session concluded, Arif Habib ultimately clinched the deal with a decisive Rs135 billion offer, surpassing Lucky Cement’s final bid of Rs134 billion. This victory reflected their determination to secure control of PIA and steer it toward a more profitable and sustainable future.
During the first phase of the privatisation process, three pre-qualified bidders submitted sealed proposals. While both Arif Habib and Lucky Cement exceeded the government’s reference price of Rs100 billion, Air Blue (Private) Limited offered a significantly lower bid of Rs26.5 billion, leaving Lucky Cement and Arif Habib as the primary contenders in the final stage.
