GEPCO privatisation: Lucky Cement consortium pre-qualified
- The company said neither it nor the consortium had entered into any binding commitment to acquire stake in GEPCO
A consortium comprising Lucky Cement Limited, Hub Power Holdings Limited, Kohat Cement Company Limited and Metro Ventures (Private) Limited has been pre-qualified to conduct due diligence on Gujranwala Electric Power Company Limited (GEPCO).
Lucky Cement, one of the largest cement makers in the country, informed in a filing to the Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX) on Wednesday.
The consortium “submitted an Expression of Interest (EoI) and Statement of Qualification for the proposed acquisition of a 51% to 100% equity stake, along with management control, in GEPCO, being offered for divestment by the Government of Pakistan through a privatisation process,” read the filing.
Lucky Cement said the consortium, along with other interested parties, had been shortlisted to undertake financial, technical and legal due diligence on the power distribution company.
The company, however, said neither it nor the consortium had entered into any binding commitment to acquire an equity stake in GEPCO.
“Any such commitment would only be made following satisfactory completion of due diligence, receipt of all applicable corporate and regulatory approvals, and a determination that the transaction is commercially viable.
“At this stage, the company, through the consortium, intends only to undertake a comprehensive due diligence exercise and evaluate the viability of the potential acquisition opportunity,” said Lucky.
On Monday, the Privatisation Commission (PC) Board approved the prequalification of nine interested parties for the privatisation of GEPCO, paving the way for the next stage of the transaction.
The board was informed that 11 EOIs had been received for the acquisition of a 51% to 100% shareholding in GEPCO, along with management control.
The prequalified parties include three Turkish energy companies – Aktor Elektrik Enerji Yatirimlari San. Ve Tic. A.S., Genvera Enerji A.S. and Cengiz Enerji Sanayii Ve Ticaret A.S. – as well as Engro Energy Limited, Sapphire Fibers Limited, Hub Power Holdings Consortium, Shirazi Investments (Pvt.) Limited Consortium, Artistic Milliners (Pvt.) Limited Consortium and AKD Securities Consortium.
The prequalified parties will now move to the next stage, including access to the Virtual Data Room for detailed buy-side due diligence.