PIA to Get Another Bailout Package Worth Rs 13 Billion

To prevent the declining Pakistan International Airlines from dissolution, the government is expected to approve another bailout package in a meeting scheduled this week.

Cabinet’s Economic Coordination Committee (ECC) will hold a meeting which will approve this bailout package.

Prime Minister, Shahid Khaqan Abbasi, will chair this meeting and the meeting will consider the approval of a bailout package to the national airline. This bailout allocation is critical for the airline to survive. The package will be worth Rs. 13 billion.

Massive Losses and Debts

PIA has faced huge losses – in fact, it has had only 5 profitable months since 2013. Prime Minister’s Advisor on Aviation, Sardar Mehtab Ahmed Khan said that in 2016 alone, PIA had a huge loss of around Rs. 40 billion and with accumulated losses amounting to Rs. 316 billion.

The airline is stuck with a heavy debt which stands at Rs. 186.5 billion. Sardar Mehtab Ahmed Khan advised that if the government decides to pay a markup on loans, about $2 billion, it will benefit PIA assisting its revival.

The federal government, under the monetary fund programme, has been trying to privatize the Pakistan International Airlines and it has been included in top-priority list for privatizations. The government, however, has failed to do so because of the opposition and disagreement of both the labor force’s union and the opposition parties.

The ECC Meeting

The meeting will also highlight and possibly fix the issue of the workers of Pakistan Steel Mills whose salaries haven’t been paid for four months. Due to this, Pakistan Steel Mill hasn’t been operating and reportedly, the lack of financial support and funds led to this crises.

via Dawn



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