KARACHI, June 16: The privatization of the Karachi Electric Supply Corporation (KESC) is becoming a big question mark, as the highest bidder of 73 per cent shares of the utility has failed to deposit even a token bid amount after four months of getting letter of acceptance from the Privatization Commission.

The latest extension given to the successful bidder—-a Saudi investors group Kanooz al Watan-—was June 15. Unconfirmed reports suggest that a further extension has been sought.

Repeated efforts to reach the Privatization Minister Dr Hafeez Sheikh by telephone on Thursday at Islamabad proved futile. Otherwise an extremely courteous person who always gives a call back, Dr Hafeez Sheikh neither came on line nor did he respond for the whole day on Thursday. His staff gave conflicting explanations of his absence. Dr Hafeez is in the assembly and that he is attending a meeting in the Commission at the same time.

Tehseen Iqbal, the Secretary of the Privatization Commission did talk on telephone on Wednesday to confirm that the Saudi investors group had not deposited any money by then. He said that the Cabinet Committee on Privatisation (CCoP) is holding a meeting on Saturday to decide whether to call fresh bids for the utility or approach the second highest bidder Hassan Associates to match the bid at Rs1.65 a share. Total bid amount comes to Rs20.24 billion.

If Hassan Associates agreed to match the highest bid, he said, it would be given a 14 days period, after issuing a letter of acceptance, to deposit 25 per cent of the bid money and give remaining 75 per cent in next one month. There is no answer as to why Pakistani investors or for that matter the other group of investors were not given as many extensions as have been given to the Saudi investors in case of the KESC bidding. The Secretary made it clear that Kanooz al Watan’s Rs100 million ($10.6 million plus) would be forfeited if it backs out of the deal.