ISLAMABAD: As the transaction structure of the Heavy Electric Complex (HEC) awaits approval by the Cabinet Committee on Privatisation (CCoP), the Privatisation Commission informed a National Assembly’s standing commi­ttee on Thursday that HEC’s regular employees would be absorbed in the State Engineering Corporation (SEC), being the parent company.

The director general of Privatisation Commission said the HEC had 18 regular employees, and during a recent meeting held with the Ministry of Industries and Production, it was proposed that these employees be considered to be absorbed in the parent company, SEC. The meeting was co-chaired by the minister for privatisation and the minister for industries and production.

The HEC, wholly owned and controlled by the State Engineering Corporation, was engaged in manufacturing of power transformers of 132Kv and 66Kv with the annual designed capacity of 3000MVA. However, over the years, the HEC has continuously lost market share in the transformer manufacturing and sale which is even less than 5pc in recent years, whereas during the last six years, the complex achieved around 30pc of the orders in the power sector for transformers, the Priviatsation Commission’s director general informed the standing committee.

The official further informed the committee, chaired by Syed Mustafa Mahmud, that there were other manufactures present in the market, besides direct import of transformers.

Published in Dawn, October 2nd, 2020