The government has told the International Monetary Fund that privatisation of state-owned enterprises is unlikely to be completed before the next general elections, sources said on Sunday.

Technical talks between the government and the Fund’s delegation are still in progress, where tax collection and other matters have already been discussed.

Sources said that privatisation of SOEs was discussed in talks on Sunday, where the government assured the Fund that it was actively working to get the process done.

The government told the IMF that the privatisation plans of the Pakistan International Airlines are progressing well and is expected to be completed by end of February next year.

IMF has also been told that no privatisation is expected to be completed before elections are completed.

Sources said that there are 27 names on the list of companies that the government hopes to privatise that has been handed to the IMF.

The list includes four financial institutes, four real estate institutions, 14 entitities related to the power industry, four industrial sector companies and one aviation company.

Apart from PIA, the list includes all 10 distribution companies (DISCOs). The list also includes Haveli Bahadur, Balloki, Guddu and Nandipur power plants.

House Building Finance Corporation, First Women Bank, Pakistan Engineering Company and SIndh Engineering Limited are also on the list.