IPP owner Shahid Abdullah barred from traveling abroad amid money laundering inquiry

Shahid Abdullah, a prominent Pakistani businessman and the owner of an independent power plant (IPP), was stopped from travelling abroad on Friday morning via a private airline.

Sources told Business Recorder that Abdullah, the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Sapphire Electric Company Limited (SECL), was traveling to Dubai, United Arab Emirates (UAE), from the Allama Iqbal International Airport Lahore; however, he was stopped at the immigration desk, as his name was on the exit control list (ECL).

They said that the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) had launched an inquiry against Abdullah some time ago for his alleged involvement in money laundering.

Till the filing of this report, it remains unclear whether Abdullah is currently in custody or has been released.

The development comes days after Abdullah wrote a letter to Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, expressing concerns over the ongoing negotiations between IPPs and the government’s Task Force on Energy

In his letter to the PM, Abdullah asserted that this is the fourth time sovereign power contracts are being negotiated forcibly, offering termination of sovereign contracts and doing away with capacity payment if the government accepts their proposals.

This is contrary to what is claimed by the Task Force on Energy that everything is being done with mutual consent, he conveyed to the PM.

Pakistan’s government remains in talks to renegotiate or scrap contracts with the IPPs to address financial challenges and streamline the power sector.