The Privatisation Commission Board on Friday approved the prequalification of 10 out of 12 interested parties for the sale of Faisalabad Electric Supply Company (Fesco), after K-Electric withdrew its bid and a lone Chinese firm failed to demonstrate sufficient interest in the process.
The development follows Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif’s directive earlier this month for authorities to adopt a comprehensive strategy to attract international investors for the privatization of state-owned power distribution companies (DISCOs) and to complete the Privatization Commission’s restructuring within a month.
Informed sources said K-Electric, the country’s only privatised power utility, chose to withdraw rather than risk disqualification over the unavailability of its financial accounts for the past two years, a key eligibility requirement. The company is instead expected to bid for a different DISCO as part of a consortium alongside Shahryar Chishti’s AsiaPak Investments, one of its major shareholders. A K-Electric spokesperson confirmed the withdrawal, saying the decision stemmed from the DISCO’s audited financial statements not yet being available, pending finalization of its Multi-Year Tariff, a matter outside the company’s control. “We remain committed to pursuing opportunities that maximize value for our stakeholders,” the spokesperson said.
Separately, China’s Jiang Xi Electric Power Construction failed to meet prequalification criteria after submitting its Expression of Interest (EOI) in Chinese rather than English on the final day of the deadline, despite repeated requests to resubmit it in English.
The board meeting, chaired by Prime Minister’s Adviser on Privatization and the Privatization Commission Chairman Muhammad Ali, approved all remaining prospective bidders to proceed to the next stage. The board was told that a total of 12 EOIs had been received for Fesco. After evaluating submissions against the approved criteria, the financial adviser recommended 10 parties for prequalification, three from Türkiye, Aktor Elektrik Enerji Yatırımları San ve Tic AŞ, Genvera Enerji AŞ (Çelik Group), and Cengiz Enerji Sanayii ve Ticaret. AŞ, alongside seven Pakistani groups: Engro Energy Limited; a consortium of Sapphire Fibres Limited, Hub Power Holdings, Lucky Cement, and Metro Ventures; Shirazi Investments (Atlas Group); a consortium of Maple Leaf Cement and Kohinoor Textile; the Pakgen Limited Consortium, comprising Nishat Mills, Nishat Power, Nishat Chunian, Lalpir, Pak Elektron Ltd, and Kohinoor Energy; and Artistic Milliners.
The prequalified parties will now move to the next stage of the transaction, including access to the Virtual Data Room for detailed buy-side due diligence. The board also approved the reconstitution of its Audit and Risk, Human Resources, Investment, and Legal committees.
The commission said the privatisation is aimed at improving operational efficiency, modernising distribution infrastructure, strengthening customer service, reducing losses, and supporting a more financially sustainable power sector, changes it said would over time create the conditions for more competitive electricity distribution and more affordable, reliable power for consumers.
Fesco is one of three DISCOs included in the first batch of privatisations, alongside Gujranwala Electric Power Company (GEPCO), which attracted 11 EOIs, many from the same bidders competing for Fesco, and Islamabad Electric Supply Company (IESCO), for which the EOI submission deadline is September 7, 2026. The Privatisation Commission said it would ensure the process remains open, transparent, and competitive, undertaken in the public interest and in support of the federal government’s broader power-sector reform agenda.
Earlier this week, the National Electric Power Regulatory Authority (NEPRA) notified sweeping new guaranteed and overall performance standards for all DISCOs, the first such update in more than two decades, aimed at ensuring compliance even after the companies move into private hands. The new Performance Standards (Distribution) Regulations 2026, issued after nearly two years of stakeholder consultations, replace the Discos Performance Rules 2005. Under the new framework, utilities will for the first time face mandatory consumer compensation, alongside heavy fines, if they fail to meet strict deadlines for restoring power after outages, replacing faulty meters, addressing voltage fluctuations, providing new connections, and other core services.
