The government has denied reports that it is arranging taxpayer-funded financing or a sovereign guarantee for Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) to purchase new aircraft.
Finance Ministry adviser Schehzad said the government was neither purchasing aircraft for the privatised airline nor providing a sovereign guarantee for loans to finance the acquisition.
His clarification followed social media claims that government officials were negotiating sovereign-backed financing for new PIA aircraft.
The reports emerged after Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb met US Export-Import Bank Chairman John Jovanovich on the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly in New York.
According to the Finance Ministry, the meeting covered the Reko Diq mining project and potential financing for PIA aircraft. Aurangzeb also discussed PIA’s interest in Boeing 787 Dreamliners and sought support for financing aircraft and engines.
Schehzad said US Exim financing generally supports US exports and can provide asset-backed financing for aircraft, meaning a sovereign guarantee is not necessarily required.
He said the government’s role was to facilitate access to international financing, technology and suppliers rather than directly finance commercial purchases.
Schehzad added that the discussions with US Exim extended beyond PIA to aviation, refinery upgrades and the Reko Diq project as part of broader Pakistan-US economic engagement.
He said claims that the government had arranged a public loan, hidden subsidy or state-backed financial support for PIA should not be treated as confirmed, as no such arrangement had been announced.
