Pakistan Steel opposes gas utility’s bid to grab its land at ‘low rate’
The Pakistan Steel Mills (PSM) has opposed a bid by the Sui Southern Gas Company Ltd to take over its 1,400 acres for Rs43 billion, a valuation the mill’s management has described as “one-sided”. The takeover bid has been made against the mill’s outstanding liabilities that the gas company’s management has worked out at Rs48bn as of Dec 31, 2022. Informed sources told Dawn that the SSGCL had asked the management of the PSM — the country’s largest distressed and industrial enterprise that has remained closed for some eight years — for a final meeting to settle the matter. The PSM’s caretaker management, however, believes that not only the land evaluation price offered by the gas company is one-sided and precariously low, but also the working for liabilities is unfair and strings attached to the offer are unacceptable.