Share Purchase Agreement signing for KESC tomorrow
By Asad Cheema

ISLAMABAD—The signing ceremony of Share Purchase Agreement (SPA) of Karachi Electric Supply Company (SPA) will be signed at Islamabad on November 14, 2005 (Monday) at 1230 hrs with the Consortium of Hasan Associates including Al-Jummaih Group of Saudi Arabia under the chairmanship of Dr. Abdul Hafeez Shaikh Federal Minister for Privatisation & Investment.
Consortium of Hasan Associates being the second highest bidder for KESC agreed to match the highest offer given earlier by Kanooz Al-Watan of Saudi Arabia during the bidding for KESC on February 4, 2005 as Kanooz-Al-Watan Group failed to deposit the bid money within the stipulated period. Recently during a meeting of the full Federal Cabinet the offer of Rs.20. 24 billion of Consortium of Hasan Associates was accepted for Karachi Electric Supply Company (KESC).
The SPA will be signed after receiving US $ 100 million as first installment of the total bid amount. The Consortium of Hasan Associates will deposit the remaining amount before the end of the current month to takeover the management control of the company. KESC has been running into losses for over a decade and is badly bleeding the exchequer by about over Rupees one billion a month. The privatisation of KESC will bring better services through professional management, new investment, technology and employment benefits.
The measures taken for the interests of the workers include offering of 20 % increase in salaries to the contract employees and 10 % shareholding of KESC to the employees. The completion of KESC transaction will send strong signal to the investors and will also give impetus to the overall Privatisation Program of Pakistan.
It will be a landmark transaction in the power sector, which will not only set the scene for a rapid turn around of KESC but also for the privatisation of other electric utilities and for significant investment in the infrastructure of Karachi.