Lucky Cement, Airblue among 3 bidders as PIA goes under the hammer today

Three bids have been submitted for the privatisation of Pakistan International Airlines (PIA).

Lucky Cement, private airline Airblue, and investment company Arif Habib submitted the sealed bids on Tuesday morning.

The reference price for Pakistan International Airlines Corporation Limited (PIACL) will be approved by the Privatisation Commission Board and the Cabinet Committee on Privatisation after the bids are reviewed.

The bids are set to be opened at a ceremony scheduled for 3:30pm, with bidders present. The bid amounts and reference price will be announced during the event, and the process will be completed in line with agreed procedures.

Prime Minister’s Adviser on Privatisation Muhammad Ali is expected to brief the media after the bidding concludes. Officials said the proceedings will be broadcast live on television and streamed on the government’s official social media platforms.

This is the government’s second attempt to privatise the national airline. A previous effort last year failed after a single offer was received that fell well below the government’s reference price, halting what would have been the country’s first major privatisation in nearly two decades.