Pakistan has extended the deadline for submitting Expressions of Interest (EoIs) to acquire Pakistan International Airlines Corp. Ltd. (PIACL) by two weeks to June 19, 2025, as the government seeks to attract more strategic investors and close the long-delayed privatization of its debt-laden national carrier, an official told The Newser.
The extension — pushed from the original June 3 cutoff — keeps all other terms of the deal intact, as Islamabad moves to offload between 51% and 100% equity in PIA, bundled with management control, in its second attempt to privatize the loss-making airline.
The revamped offer is part of a broader privatization agenda aligned with structural reforms agreed under the International Monetary Fund’s Extended Fund Facility. Authorities hope the PIA divestment will help plug the fiscal deficit, overhaul inefficient state-owned enterprises, and bring in much-needed foreign investment.
To sweeten the deal, the government has offered general sales tax exemptions on new aircraft and removed PIA’s legacy debt from its books, aiming to present buyers with a “net-zero balance sheet.” A revised pricing benchmark is also expected to be announced soon.
The latest plan is designed to avoid the pitfalls of a previous failed attempt, which offered 60% shares with a 15% optional top-up. That offer collapsed under the weight of PIA’s Rs45 billion negative equity and an 18% GST burden on aircraft purchases — both of which have now been addressed with IMF backing.
Advisory firm EY Consulting LLC is guiding the Privatization Commission on the transaction. The government remains intent on closing the deal before year-end, according to officials familiar with the timeline.