Islamabad continues talks with Qatar about PIA stake

The Pakistani government continues to talk to the Qatari government about the latter taking a stake in PIA - Pakistan International Airlines. Pakistan's Minister for Privatisation Fawad Hasan Fawad has recently had a series of meetings with Qatari officials, according to The Nation newspaper, with discussions proceeding "in a smooth manner." Pakistan's government is attempting to partially privatise its loss-making state-owned carrier and has recently appointed a Ernst & Young led consortium to advise on the sale. However, reports of Qatar taking a stake in PIA are not new. Fifteen months ago, ch-aviation reported on plans by the Pakistani government to offer Qatar Airways a 51% stake (and operational control) of PIA. An internal Pakistan government report on the partial privatisation says it will involve a large severance payout to an unspecified number of employees who will lose their jobs if the privatisation occurs. PIA's employee-per-aircraft ratio has historically been high. While ongoing efforts have reduced that ratio, the current level is unlikely to be acceptable to a future investor, resulting in job losses. The absence of union agreements on job loss numbers and the subsequent financial payouts (payable by the Pakistani government) remain key barriers to securing uniform support within PIA to sell the stake in it.<br/>