ISLAMABAD: Pakistan's finance chief Shaukat Tarin said on Thursday it was important to resolve an outstanding dispute between a United Arab Emirates-based telecommunications company and the country's privatization commission during a meeting at the finance division in Islamabad.
The meeting included the federal privatization minister Muhammadmian Soomro, group chief executive officer of Etisalat International Hatem Dowidar and other senior government functionaries.
The dispute emerged after an Etisalat consortium bought a 26 percent stake in the Pakistan Telecommunication Company Limited (PTCL) for $2.6 billion in 2005 that gave the company majority voting rights. The UAE firm paid an initial $1.8 billion as per the deal terms, which also included transferring ownership of some properties to PTCL from the government.
However, the Abu Dhabi-listed operator since withheld $800 million after Pakistani authorities failed to transfer title of some properties to the PTCL as required under the agreement.
"The Finance Minister Mr. Shaukat Tarin underscored the significance of resolving outstanding issues between Etisalat and the Privatization Commission and moving ahead for a sustainable solution," said an official statement released by the finance ministry. "He emphasized on fair evaluation of properties at the earliest. The Finance Minister also highlighted prospects of foreign investment in Pakistan especially in IT and Telecom sector which is growing rapidly. The Government is providing conducive environment and incentives to attract foreign investment, he added."
The Etisalat official reaffirmed to have evaluation of properties completed soon and expressed readiness to further invest in IT and Telecom sector in Pakistan.
The finance minister also noted the UAE was one of the major economic partners of Pakistan, adding that his country attributed tremendous value to its relations with the Gulf country.
Tarin maintained that Pakistan wanted to further strengthen the business and trade relations between the two sides.
