Islamabad August 17 2022: Pakistan International Airlines Corporation (PSX: PIAA) gains 30.8 percent in last two trading session as government is considering to offer its controlling to Qatar.
Government of Pakistan decided to offer 51% stakes with the management control in the Roosevelt Hotel, New York, and the Pakistan International Airlines to Qatar.
Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif took these decisions during a meeting convened to make preparations for his visit next week to Qatar, which is tentatively planned for August 22 to 23, highly placed sources told The Express Tribune.
PIA law bars selling more than 49% stakes and giving management control to any other party. Therefore, government decided to amend the law on immediate basis.
The sources said that it was decided that Pakistan should offer 10% stakes to Qatar in the government-owned listed companies, in line with the similar offer that it has made to the United Arab Emirates.
The UAE is keen to get up to 20% stakes in the Pakistani oil and gas exploration companies and has already handed over a list. Last week, the UAE government showed its intention to invest $1 billion in these companies. The UAE had in May refused to give cash deposits due to Islamabad’s inability to return previous loans and instead asked to open its companies for investment.
The Roosevelt Hotel is owned by the PIA through a PIA-Investment Limited. The PIA-IL holds its stakes through a subsidiary which is registered in the British Virgin Islands. The hotel, located at a highly priced location, was closed in December 2020.
