KARACHI, Oct 27(Focus Pakistan) — Lucky Cement Limited formally entered the IESCO privatisation race on Tuesday, confirming it wants a hand in running the electricity network that serves Pakistan’s federal capital. Its filings show an ambition that reaches well beyond a single utility.
The Yunus Brothers Group company said it had joined Hub Power Holdings Limited, Kohat Cement Company Limited and Metro Ventures (Private) Limited in a consortium. The group submitted an Expression of Interest and Statement of Qualification for a potential acquisition of 51% to 100% of Islamabad Electric Supply Company’s (IESCO) equity, along with management control.
The Privatisation Commission has now cleared the consortium to examine that deal. At its 260th meeting last Thursday, the commission’s board, which Adviser to the Prime Minister on Privatisation Muhammad Ali chairs, approved 10 parties for IESCO and listed the Lucky-backed group under Hub Power Holdings’ name.
One consortium, three distributors
On Aug 28, the commission’s board prequalified the same four-company consortium for Faisalabad Electric Supply Company (FESCO). The group also filed an expression of interest for Gujranwala Electric Power Company (GEPCO), which gives it a foot in the door at all three distributors in the government’s opening round of sales. None of the disclosures says whether the consortium will bid for one, two or all three.
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The IESCO shortlist adds a twist of its own. Bestway Cement qualified as a standalone party, putting two of the country’s best-known cement names in the same race. Both remain at the prequalification stage, and neither has placed a financial bid.
The rest of the field carries weight too. Three Turkish energy companies, Aktor Elektrik, Genvera Enerji and Cengiz Enerji, made the cut. So did Engro Energy, Sapphire Fibres and Novatex, along with consortia that Artistic Milliners and Hasnaat Brothers Construction lead.
No commitment yet
Lucky chose its words with care. The company stressed that “neither the Company nor the Consortium has entered into any binding commitment” to buy IESCO equity. It said it would commit only after satisfactory due diligence, all corporate and regulatory approvals, and a finding that the deal makes commercial sense. For now, the consortium plans nothing beyond a full due diligence exercise.
That work begins in the commission’s virtual data room, where all 10 shortlisted parties can now study IESCO’s financial, technical and legal records. The government will then choose a buyer through competitive bidding. The commission’s qualification document also requires prequalified bidders to pay bid or earnest money, among other conditions it lists in its instructions to bidders.
A winding road to sale
IESCO’s path to the auction block has not run straight. In January, the government had shelved the utility’s privatisation for the time being, while FESCO and GEPCO moved ahead. On May 19, the commission reversed course and invited expressions of interest for all three distributors. It later pushed IESCO’s deadline from Sept 7 to Sept 21 to give investors more time.
Appetite has held up. The commission drew 10 expressions of interest for IESCO, 12 for FESCO and 11 for GEPCO. The government chose to start with distributors whose transmission and distribution losses run around 9% to 10%.
For Lucky shareholders, the filing leaves key questions open. It offers no word on how the four partners will split ownership, who would manage the utility, or how the group would fund a deal on this scale.
