CCP gives green signal to Engro to sell thermal assets

KARACHI: The Competition Commission of Pakistan (CCP) on Friday approved the sale of a 50.1 per cent stake in Engro Powergen Thar to a consortium comprising Liberty Power Holding, Soorty Enterprises, and Procon Engineering.

Engro Energy, a wholly owned subsidiary of Engro Corporation, has entered into a share purchase agreement (SPA) with the consortium for the sale of its thermal energy assets.

Engro, which immensely contributes to Pakistan’s energy space, is selling its thermal assets to streamline and optimize capital and resource allocation.

The CCP has determined that the market for power generation tied to the Central Power Purchasing Agency-Guarantee (CPPA-G) system is the relevant market to consider for this transaction. Its analysis further confirms that Engro Powergen Thar’s market share as per its capacity is nominal, which will remain the same after the transaction.

The CCP also predicts that the sale of Engro’s share will not lead to an increased dominance of acquirers in the power generation market.

With this approval, the CCP anticipates improved efforts to streamline resource allocation in Pakistan’s power generation sector, resulting in more competition in the long term.

Liberty Power Holding is a recently established private limited company with the main purpose of managing power generation companies within the Liberty Group.

Soorty Enterprises is a private limited company in the business of manufacturing and sales of denim products, and Procon Engineering is engaged in the business of manufacturing automotive parts, non-woven fabrics and foam products.