ISLAMABAD: The Privatisation Commission board on Tuesday recommended the inclusion of the Faiji Fertiliser Company (FCC) in the Arif Habib-led consortium that won the auction for Pakistan International Airlines (PIA).

Last December, the consortium had successfully bid Rs135 billion for a 75 per cent stake in the national flag carrier. The FFC was initially among the bidders but had withdrawn from the process ahead of the auction. It had later joined the winning consortium on December 25.

It should be mentioned that the Privatisation Commission board’s recommendation has now paved the way for the consortium to buy the remaining 25pc stake in PIA for the consortium to take full control of the flag carrier.

On Tuesday, the Privatisation Commission held a meeting, which was chaired by the Adviser to the Prime Minister on Privatisation, Muhammad Ali.

According to a press release, in accordance with the terms of the share purchase and subscription agreement, the FFC was nominated by the consortium, with Arif Habib Corporation Limited serving as the lead member.

The commission board, after due review, endorsed the nomination and confirmed that FFC fulfilled the applicable eligibility and regulatory requirements, the press release added.

However, the statement said that the proposed inclusion of FFC in the consortium was subject to approval by the Cabinet Committee on Privatisation and the federal cabinet, as required under the applicable framework.

The Arif Habib-led consortium includes Fatima Fertiliser (34.1pc), Fauji Fertiliser (33.9pc), Lake City (16pc), and the City School with AKD (Aqeel Karim Dhedhi) Group (16pc).