ISLAMABAD, Aug 6: The Privatization Commission has announced the bidding for Associated Cement (Rohri) on August 28. A pre-bid meeting to this effect will take place on August 21, while the prospective bidders have been asked to submit the required earnest money latest by August 26.

The Privatization Commission has also invited fresh expressions of interest in addition to the EoIs received earlier and has requested those interested parties who had not submitted EoIs earlier to avail this opportunity. The parties which had submitted EOIs need not to apply fresh.

The sale of the assets of Associated Cement (Rohri) Limited, having production capacity of 270,000 tons per annum, had earlier attracted 21 domestic parties.

The Privatization Commission had invited EoI from the prospective bidders during the first week of June 2003. The EoIs submitted to the Privatization Commission earlier include 15 parties from Karachi, two from Lahore and one each from Dhaharki, Islamabad, Sukkur and Quetta.

The company owns about 195.3 acres of purchased land (which includes some portion which are encroached). It also owns 24.45 acres of agriculture land located in the vicinity. The plant is located on an area of about 36 acres.

Of the land under residential colony, 127 acres are well developed. All required infrastructure facilities are also available on the site. The factory is located seven km from Sukkur in Sindh. The payment of the ‘golden handshake’ to its employees has already been finalized without any burden on the buyer.