ISLAMABAD: The Privatisation Commission on Tuesday approved the appointment of a financial adviser for the outsourcing of Lahore and Karachi airports.

In a statement, the commission said its board of directors had approved a “consortium led by EY-Parthenon as the top-ranked interested party” for appointment as financial adviser for the outsourcing of Allama Iqbal International Airport, Lahore, and Jinnah International Airport, Karachi.

The board also constituted a negotiation committee to finalise the Financial Advisory Services Agreement (FASA) with the successful consortium, the statement added.

Meanwhile, the commission appointed the Manila-based Asian Development Bank (ADB) last month as financial and transaction adviser for the outsourcing of New Islamabad International Airport.

The commission said its board also took up the privatisation of Lahore Electric Supply Company (Lesco) and Multan Electric Power Company (Mepco) as major transactions, necessitating the appointment of financial advisers in accordance with the applicable regulations.

Following the approval, the commission would initiate the process of appointing financial advisers for the two transactions, the statement said.

Lesco and Mepco constitute the fourth batch of power distribution companies (Discos) identified for privatisation by the government, while the privatisation process for the three earlier batches is already at different stages.

Faisalabad Electric, the first Disco in the first batch, has recently attracted a dozen local and international investors, with formal expressions of interest (EOIs) currently under review by the commission.

The deadline for submission of EOIs for two other Discos in the first batch is two months away.