KARACHI: Boeing will send Pakistan International Airlines a revised proposal to buy new aircraft, the finance ministry said on Tuesday, as the recently privatized carrier seeks to expand its fleet and return grounded planes to service.

The proposal could help address one of the central challenges facing PIA’s new owners: obtaining aircraft quickly enough to expand routes and improve services. The ministry did not say how many planes Boeing might offer, what they would cost or when they could be delivered. No purchase agreement was announced.

A consortium led by Arif Habib Corporation took control of the formerly state-owned airline in June under a privatization deal involving a total commitment of Rs180 billion ($643 million). Of that, Rs55 billion ($196 million) was designated for the government as sale proceeds and Rs125 billion ($446 million) for investment in PIA, including fleet expansion and modernization. The Rs180 billion figure is the total transaction commitment, not the price paid to the government. 

“The Finance Minister welcomed Boeing’s confirmation that a revised proposal for the acquisition of new aircraft would be shared with PIA, while options for earlier delivery slots and interim leasing arrangements would also be explored,” the finance ministry said in a brief on Muhammad Aurangzeb’s meeting with Boeing Global President Brendan Nelson in New York.

There was no comment from Boeing. 

Aurangzeb and Nelson also discussed possible financing from the Export-Import Bank of the United States, along with engines, spare parts, maintenance and work to restore grounded aircraft, the ministry said. It did not announce an agreement on financing or leasing.

PIA’s new owners have identified a fleet of at least 25 to 30 aircraft as necessary to operate sustainably and support expansion, according to a US Commerce Department assessment of opportunities in Pakistan’s aviation sector. 

The meeting also covered aviation safety and Pakistan’s ambition to restore direct flights to the United States. That would require US regulatory clearance: the Federal Aviation Administration assigned Pakistan a Category 2 safety rating in 2020, preventing Pakistani carriers from starting new US services. The finance ministry announced no change to that status. 

Aurangzeb also outlined the government’s separate plans to outsource management of major airports, including those in Islamabad, Karachi and Lahore.