Shanghai Power committed to buying K-Electric

Published March 27, 2018
General view of the K-Electric’s Bin Qasim Power Plant.—Reuters
General view of the K-Electric’s Bin Qasim Power Plant.—Reuters

KARACHI: The Shanghai Electric Power Ltd (SEPL) has sought the government’s support in accelerating the process of regulatory approvals to facilitate the completion of Sale-Purchase Agreement (SPA) of majority shares in K-Electric Ltd (KEL).

A delegation of SEPL led by Wang Yundan, the company chairman, called on the Prime Minister Shahid Khaqan Abbasi in Islamabad on Monday and apprised him of the current status of acquisition process of majority stake in KEL.

The premier assured the delegation that the government remains committed to supporting SEPL with a view to further liberalising the power generation and distribution sector. “To this extent, the government is committed to enabling the process [of KEL sale] to move forward subject to completion of all regulatory frameworks,” Abbasi told the delegation.

Meanwhile, KEL and Arif Habib Ltd (AHL), which is manager to the offer, informed the Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX) that Shanghai Electric will be renewing its interest in purchasing controlling stake in KEL since the last public announcement of its intention (PoI) has run into its time limit.

The deal is valued at $1.77 billion. The time period for making the PoI of purchase of stake in KEL expired on Monday, which led the K-Electric to announce the withdrawal of intention for acquisition (directly or indirectly) of up to 66.40pc of its shares by SEPL.

The announcements made separately to the PSX by KEL and AHL on Monday were essentially formalities and did not mean to say that either the seller or buyer had walked out of the deal.

“As the acquirer continues to be fully committed to consummate the transaction pending receipt of regulatory and other approvals. The acquirer shall make a fresh public announcement of intention in accordance with the prescribed formalities immediately with effect from the expiry date,” the statement read.

Accordingly, the transaction will be consummated immediately upon receipt of remaining regulatory and other approvals.

The major hurdle to completion of the deal is the Multi-Year Tariff (MYT) for KEL to be decided by National Electric Power Regulatory Authority.

As for approvals, both Ministry of Defence and Ministry of Interior have given the no-objection certificates for the sale of majority shares to the Chinese company, but other approvals remain pending, the sources said.

Published in Dawn, March 27th, 2018

Follow Dawn Business on Twitter, LinkedIn, Instagram and Facebook for insights on business, finance and tech from Pakistan and across the world.

Opinion

Editorial

All out
Updated 25 Feb, 2025

All out

PAKISTAN cricket captain Mohammad Rizwan’s assessment was brutal — it could not have been any other way. At ...
Bearing the brunt
25 Feb, 2025

Bearing the brunt

FOR the past several months, we have repeatedly been told by the prime minister and his cabinet that the government...
Afghan resettlement
25 Feb, 2025

Afghan resettlement

AFGHAN refugees who fled their country after the Taliban took over in 2021, and who hoped to resettle in the West,...
Taliban divisions
Updated 24 Feb, 2025

Taliban divisions

The only workable solution lies in Mullah Akhundzada loosening his iron grip on the country.
Oblivious to drought
24 Feb, 2025

Oblivious to drought

PAKISTAN faces two types of drought: one caused by dry weather or lower-than-normal rainfall, and the other ...
Digital children
24 Feb, 2025

Digital children

AS most parents with young children will agree, the easiest way to pacify a bawling child is to hand them a...