Government assets in OGDCL, PPL to be sold in next two months

The Privatisation Commission will dispose of government assets in OGDCL and Pakistan Petroleum Limited (PPL) in January or February 2012. Secretary, Privatisation Commission informed the National Assembly''s Standing Committee on Privatisation on Thursday that the actual privatisation of OGDCL and PPL was planned in December 2011.
However, due to some reasons it would be executed in January or February 2012. Committee Chairman Malik Bilal Rehman in his ruling directed the PC to arrange a meeting to take up the confusion surrounding OGDCL privatisation. He called secretary ministry of finance, secretary ministry of law and justice and secretary Cabinet Division in the next meeting of the committee so that exact position of government could be determined on the OGDCL sale. Secretary Privatisation said the process of privatisation of three Gencos and nine Discos has been initiated which had approval of Council of Common Interests.
Earlier, members of the committee criticised the role of the PC in disposing of the Karachi Electricity Supply Company (KESC) which has been creating lots of problems for the government and failed to smoothen supply of electricity to Karachi. They suggested the Commission to be more careful before the privatisation of Gencos and Discos.
Secretary Commission took parliamentarians into confidence on the on-going privatisation programme. He said the sale of Pakistan Mineral Development Co-operation (PMDC) was postponed due to non-availability of fresh approval from the Council of Common Interests. The CCI had approved the sale of PMDC in May 1997 and August 2006, however, fresh approval was required in this regard, he added.
"Now the PC Board has decided to reinitiate the privatisation of PMDC and the approval will be taken from the provincial governments," the secretary said. The committee suspended the matter of releasing the PC funds on advertisement campaign of flood relief activities. The committee was informed that federal minister for privatisation released Rs 276 million and another Rs 261 million of the PC for the ad campaign on flood relief during current fiscal year. The standing committee also constituted a five-man sub-committee to review the privatisation policy.