Pakistan to Start Selling Three of Its Power Utilities Next Year

(Bloomberg) -- Pakistan will start privatizing its power distribution companies from next year to stay on course with its pledge to the International Monetary Fund to fix the debt-hit energy sector.

The Privatization Commission Board has approved a plan to complete the legal formalities by January and is in the process of appointing a financial adviser to sell three utilities in the first phase, the commission said in a statement on Saturday without providing details. The proposal will now need to be vetted by the Cabinet Commission on Privatization. 

Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif’s government intends to privatize six power distributors while putting three others in the northwest and the south under concessional agreements.

Pakistan’s energy sector is plagued by mismanagement and inefficiencies that has led to rising debt at these state-run utilities and inflated tariffs, impacting the finances of the government and burdening the consumers. 

The South Asian country is expecting the Washington-based multilateral lender to approve a $7 billion loan package under a new agreement that wants Pakistan to cut energy losses to revive the economy.

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