Cabinet committee seeks changes to Pakistan Petroleum, Saindak Metals board appointments

The Cabinet Committee on State-Owned Enterprises (CCoSOEs) has asked the Petroleum Division to revise its proposals for board appointments at Pakistan Petroleum Limited (PPL) and Saindak Metals Limited (SML), saying each state-owned enterprise should have only one ex-officio director representing the sponsoring ministry.

The decision was taken at a meeting chaired by Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb at the Finance Division on Thursday. The committee instructed the Petroleum Division to amend the two summaries before they are sent to the federal cabinet.

The committee said the composition of SOE boards must comply with the State-Owned Enterprises (Ownership and Management) Act and Policy, which limits representation from the sponsoring ministry or division to a single ex-officio member.

It also postponed a decision on the Petroleum Division's proposal to exempt selected energy-sector SOEs from International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS-14 and IFRS-9). The division was directed to hold further consultations with the Finance Division and the Law and Justice Division before submitting a revised summary.

Separately, the committee approved the Maritime Affairs Division's proposal to appoint an independent director against a vacant seat on the board of Pakistan National Shipping Corporation (PNSC).

The CCoSOEs also accepted a proposal from the Ministry of Industries and Production to remove the Small and Medium Enterprises Development Authority (Smeda) from the list of state-owned enterprises, noting that it is a statutory body with a non-commercial mandate.