ISLAMABAD, Nov 22: The Privatization Commission Board on Tuesday pre-qualified eight parties for the sale of Pakistan Steel. The board, which met here on Tuesday under the chairmanship of Privatization and Investment Minister Dr Abdul Hafeez Sheikh, pre-qualified eight parties for entering into the data room for due diligence of Pakistan Steel Mills Corporation (PSMC), while three parties were conditionally pre-qualified subject to the formalities of additional information by them.

The meeting was informed that the successful bidder for KESC — the consortium of Hasan Associates led by the Al-Jumaih Group of Saudi Arabia — had deposited $100 million out of the total bid offer of Rs20.24 billion and a letter of acceptance had been issued to them, while the remaining proceeds would be received by the end of the current month, followed by handing over the management control of the company to the consortium.

After receiving total proceeds of Rs3.204 billion from Bestway Cement Ltd for the sale of 85.29 per cent shares (10,507,934 shares) of Mustehkam Cement Limited (MCL) at the rate of Rs305 per share, and Rs128 million from Mohammad Umar Memom of Sadaf Enterprises, Karachi, for the sale of machinery of Bolan Textile Mills, both had been handed over to the successful buyers, the meeting was apprised.

The meeting was informed that the Privatization Commission was inviting expressions of interest (EoIs) from reputed international and/or Pakistani entities (solely or as part of a consortium) for the divestment of management rights of open-ended mutual funds managed by NITL.

The Privatization Commission intends to split the fund under the management of National Investment Trust Limited (NITL), National Investment (Unit) Trust (The Fund) into a number of parts and divest/sell the rights to manage the funds.

To get the Pakistan Petroleum Limited transaction move forward, the Privatization Commission Board formed a committee, with two board members, a senior representative of the Balochistan government and the managing director of PPL as its members.

The board also gave an approval to the criteria for the pre-qualification of prospective bidders for the strategic sale of SNGPL and SSGC and constituted pre-qualification committees.