Your bill has not changed because of privatisation, and as of 30 October 2026 none of the three companies has been sold. The government says tariffs will still be set through NEPRA's process and notified by the government, and that one uniform tariff for the whole country will continue after the sales. That is a policy commitment, not a guarantee, and one cost of the restructuring, retired staff pensions, is to be funded by consumers through tariffs.
Which companies are being sold
The first batch of distribution companies for privatisation is three companies: Faisalabad Electric Supply Company (FESCO), Gujranwala Electric Power Company (GEPCO) and Islamabad Electric Supply Company (IESCO). If you are not sure which company supplies you, the name is printed at the top of your bill, and our explainer on what a DISCO is lists all of them.
Together these three serve more than 14 million consumers in Punjab, the Islamabad region and parts of Azad Jammu and Kashmir, according to Dawn in May 2026.
In May 2026 the government invited investors to buy between 51% and 100% of each company, with management control. That replaced an earlier idea, reported by Business Recorder in December 2025, under which only GEPCO would be sold outright and the other two offered as concessions. If you see that concession model described as current, the report is out of date.
In early October 2026 the government told the IMF it plans to sell nine DISCOs by December 2027, according to the Express Tribune. QESCO is excluded. No official schedule naming the companies after the first batch, with dates, has been published in the reports available, so treat any claim that your company is next on a specific date with caution.
How far each sale has got
All three companies are now in active sale processes. The table below summarises the latest reported position for each.
| Company | Latest reported stage | Date of report |
|---|---|---|
| IESCO | 10 parties prequalified by the Privatisation Commission Board | 22 October 2026 |
| FESCO | 10 parties prequalified; a change to one consortium approved | 22 September 2026; change approved 22 October 2026 |
| GEPCO | Expressions of interest from 11 investors, still under evaluation | Received by 22 August 2026; still being evaluated on 22 September 2026 |
IESCO
IESCO received expressions of interest from 10 parties: three Turkish firms and seven local ones, including Engro Energy and a Hubco-led consortium, Dawn reported on 22 September 2026. On 22 October 2026 the Privatisation Commission Board prequalified 10 parties for the IESCO sale.
FESCO
FESCO had 10 prequalified parties as of 22 September 2026. At its 22 October meeting the Board approved a change to one of the FESCO consortiums.
GEPCO
GEPCO drew expressions of interest from 11 investors for a 51% to 100% stake. On 22 September 2026 those were still being evaluated. A later prequalification result for GEPCO has not been confirmed in the reports available, so check the Privatisation Commission's own announcements for its current status.
Deadlines that moved
The original May 2026 notice set expression-of-interest deadlines of 7 July for FESCO, 6 August for GEPCO and 7 September for IESCO. A report on 29 July gave 7 August, 21 August and 7 September instead. The deadlines were extended, which is why dates in older articles do not match. They are history now and do not tell you when a sale will close.
The stages a sale goes through
You do not need to do anything while this happens. As the reports describe it, each sale moves through these stages:
- Expressions of interest, where investors say they want to bid.
- Prequalification, where the Privatisation Commission checks each party against set criteria.
- Due diligence, where prequalified bidders get access to a virtual data room with the company's information.
- Bidding.
- Approvals.
As of 30 October 2026, IESCO and FESCO are past prequalification. GEPCO's prequalification result is not confirmed. No bid date or completion date has been announced, and there is no sale price or winning bidder for any of the three.
Who sets your tariff after a sale
A common worry is that a private owner will set its own prices. The government's stated position says otherwise.
On 24 August 2026 the Cabinet Committee on Privatisation approved a restructuring plan for FESCO, GEPCO and IESCO. Muhammad Ali, the Prime Minister's Adviser on Privatisation, said consumers remain protected under the regulatory framework, with tariffs still set through NEPRA's process and notified by the government.
In early October the Privatisation Commission told the IMF that the uniform tariff will continue after privatisation. Its spokesman said bidders have been told the deals assume this. In practice, that means customers of a privatised company pay the same notified tariff as customers of the state-owned DISCOs.
So the rates that matter to you are the NEPRA-determined, government-notified ones. You can see the current domestic slabs on our electricity tariff page. Those rates can still go up or down for all consumers through the normal process. What the government has said is that a sale will not, by itself, give a buyer the power to charge its customers differently.
What could still reach your bill
The restructuring plan contains two decisions that bear directly on tariffs, one designed to keep costs off bills and one that puts a cost on them.
Land stays with the government
Under the restructuring, the government keeps ownership of all land belonging to the three companies. It will lease that land to the buyers at existing rates, so that tariffs do not rise to cover extra lease costs, the Express Tribune reported in August 2026.
Pensions are to be funded through tariffs
The Cabinet Committee also decided to set up a new company to take over the pension liabilities of retired employees. That company is to be funded by consumers through tariffs. This is the main documented way a cost connected with the sale reaches your bill. The reports do not say how much it will add per unit or when it would start appearing.
This is why no one can honestly promise that bills will not rise. The official statements are about who sets the tariff and whether it stays uniform, not about its level.
Subsidies under a private owner
Private ownership does not in itself end government subsidy. The same October Tribune report noted that the government kept Rs163 billion of subsidies for K-Electric, which is privately owned, in this year's budget.
What has not been stated anywhere in the available reports is how protected-consumer status, lifeline rates or one-off relief would work under a new owner of IESCO, FESCO or GEPCO. If someone tells you these will definitely continue, or definitely end, they are going further than any official statement. Until there is an announcement, the rules on your current bill are the ones that apply.
Why the government is selling
The Tribune reported in October that the nine companies in the plan lose about Rs700 billion a year combined. QESCO, which lost Rs154 billion in FY2025, is excluded from the sale target. Reducing those losses is the stated reason behind the programme and the IMF commitment.
Messages that are not real
When a company changes hands, scammers often send messages claiming your connection is moving to a new company and you must re-register or pay a fee through a link. No report on these sales mentions any re-registration by consumers. Nothing about the sale requires you to give your details to anyone.
If you receive a message like this, do not click the link or pay. Our guide to spotting fake bill QR codes and subsidy links shows the warning signs.
The reports also say nothing about whether reference numbers, the bill layout, the online bill portal, the helpline or payment channels will change after a sale. Ignore any claim either way until your company or the Privatisation Commission announces something.
What to do next
- Keep paying your bill as normal. You can check your current bill on the IESCO, FESCO or GEPCO page, or paste your reference number on the homepage.
- Compare your per-unit rates with the notified NEPRA tariff, not with rumours about what a buyer might charge.
- For GEPCO's status, or any bid or closing date, check the Privatisation Commission's official press releases rather than social media posts.
- Delete any message asking you to re-register your connection or pay a fee because of the sale.
- Watch for any announcement on the pension company and how its cost will be shown on bills.
Sources
- Govt invites expressions of interest for sale of three major Discos (Dawn)
- Govt invites bids for privatisation of FESCO, GEPCO, IESCO (Business Recorder)
- PIA sell-off model floated for DISCOs (Express Tribune)
- GEPCO sale draws two new bidders (Express Tribune)
- Pakistani, Turkish, Saudi companies show interest in Gepco privatisation (Dawn)
- CCoP approves restructuring plan for FESCO, GEPCO and IESCO (Business Recorder)
- Privatisation body approves restructuring plan for first batch of Discos (The Nation)
- Rs911b assets transferred in DISCO restructuring (Express Tribune)
- 10 parties in race to acquire Iesco (Dawn e-paper)
- Privatisation Commission gets 'overwhelming response' from investors for Iesco privatisation (Dawn)
- Govt sets bold DISCO sale deadline (Express Tribune)
- Privatisation Commission prequalifies 10 parties for IESCO sale (Business Recorder)
- DISCO privatisation sees big policy shift: only GEPCO up for sale? (Business Recorder)