ISLAMABAD (The Thursday Times) — Pakistan plans to privatise its first three power distribution companies in the first quarter of 2027, pushing back the sale of the Islamabad, Faisalabad and Gujranwala distributors from a December target after investors asked for more time, the government’s privatisation chief said.
Muhammad Ali, the Prime Minister’s Adviser on Privatisation and chairman of the Privatisation Commission, said due diligence on the Islamabad Electric Supply Company (IESCO), Faisalabad Electric Supply Company (FESCO) and Gujranwala Electric Power Company (GEPCO) was under way, but potential buyers had sought more time to assess the complex transactions.
Work has also begun on selling the Hyderabad and Sukkur distributors, with those deals expected in the second quarter of 2027, while the Lahore, Multan, Peshawar and Hazara companies are scheduled for the second half of the year.
Ali called power-sector reform a matter of national security, saying high energy costs were undermining industry, exports and growth, and that tariffs had to fall and competition be introduced to stop consumers and factories leaving the national grid. He acknowledged investors’ concerns, drawn from the experience of K-Electric, over regulatory uncertainty, tariff revisions and the protection of long-term investment, and said multi-year tariffs and investment plans would be finalised before bidding.
New owners would have to cut losses and improve bill recovery through smart metering and better load management, with penalties for missing performance targets and rewards for efficiency gains that would also be shared with consumers, he said. The commission plans to publish its reform proposals, covering tariffs, investment and a competitive electricity market, by mid-November.
