February 28, 2022 (MLN): The board of directors of EMCO Industries (EMCO), in its meeting held on February 25, 2022, has approved a project to manufacture, assemble and sell High Voltage Instrument Transformers for voltages up to 245kV under a technical licensing agreement, the company's filing on PSX showed today.

Instrument Transformers are used extensively in the high voltage substations for measuring current and voltages and offering protection and monitoring capabilities for the operation of the power grid.

Most often, this equipment is deployed at large power generating facilities to measure the power being generated, as well as at large commercial and industrial consumer sites to accurately measure the power being utilized.

They are also used for isolating the environment between the metering and protection circuits in substations. Primary clients for Instrument Transformers are NTDC, DISCOs, EPC contractors and large private industrial clients. EMCO is poised to be the only domestic manufacturer for Instrument Transformers in Pakistan.

The introduction of a locally manufactured, duly type tested and certified Instrument Transformer product from independent accredited laboratories will not only promote local industry but will also save precious foreign exchange for the country, the notice added.

In another notification, the company informed that the board has also approved a BMR project to enhance the capacity of the porcelain insulator manufacturing facility by 40%.

EMCO has planned this BMR activity to not only add capacity to allocate to the rising demand in domestic and export markets but also to aggressively pursue automation and controls of existing equipment to enhance product yields and optimize production processes.

March 11, 2022 (MLN): Economic Coordination Committee (ECC), in a meeting, has approved supplementary grant amounting to Rs747.539 million in favor of Petroleum Division for further releasing to SSGCL to undertake 85 villages/localities in the current fiscal year, a press release said today.

This has been approved after considering the proposal submitted by the Ministry of Energy (Petroleum Division) on the supply of gas to localities/villages in a 5 km radius of Gas producing fields.

Federal Minister for Finance and Revenue Mr. Shaukat Tarin presided over a meeting of ECC of the Cabinet today.

Federal Minister for National Food Security and Research Syed Fakhar Imam, Adviser to the Prime Minister on Commerce and Investment Mr. Abdul Razak Dawood, Federal Secretaries, and senior officials attended the meeting.

March 11, 2022 (MLN): Escorts Investment Bank Limited has received a notice of Public Announcement of Intention (PAI) to acquire more than 50% shares and control of the Bank from M. Mian Javaid Akhtar, Mr Mohammad Ali Kazmi, and Mr Mian Zeeshan Javaid, a notice issued to bourse showed.

For the aforesaid transaction, AKD Securities has been appointed as Manager to the Offer by acquirers.

March 11, 2022: The World Bank’s Board of Executive Directors today approved $435 million in financing for three projects in Pakistan; the Pakistan Housing Finance project, the Punjab Urban Land Systems Enhancement project, and the Punjab Affordable Housing Program, a press release said today.

These projects will expand access to housing finance, particularly for low-income households, improve land tenure rights and facilitate affordable housing developments in urban Punjab.

Affordable and accessible housing is in high demand in Pakistan, which is home to over 200 million people and is the most urbanized country in South Asia,” said Najy Benhassine, World Bank Country Director for Pakistan. “These projects will contribute to addressing housing needs, particularly for low-income households, by leveraging the private sector and by facilitating access to mortgage options for those who currently cannot access financing to buy a home. They will also strengthen property rights and increase the supply of climate-resilient, affordable housing developments.”

The $85 million additional financing for the Pakistan Housing Finance project will help expand access to affordable mortgages to increase homeownership among low-income households, including women and informal workers. The additional financing will scale up the credit risk-sharing facility launched in 2018, to provide partial credit guarantees to banks, in order to incentivize them to lend to borrowers traditionally excluded from commercial financing. This will benefit up to 70,000 first-time homebuyers in the country, who qualify for the Government’s interest rate subsidy program - Mera Pakistan, Mera Ghar (My Pakistan, My Home).

The $150 million Punjab Urban Land Systems Enhancement project will strengthen land administration and facilitate housing authorities’ efforts to identify suitable areas and public lands for affordable housing developments in the Punjab province. The project will support the provincial government in upgrading its land registry by creating a digital, province-wide inventory of lands and deeds. This will help secure land tenure and streamline procedures for land-related permits – which are essential for private sector investment, housing finance and tax revenue collection. The project will also generate geospatial data and risk information to inform urban planning and disaster risk management strategies for natural hazards such as floods. More than 38 million people are expected to benefit from land registration, which will not only improve tenure security but also formalize land and property ownership.

The $200 million Punjab Affordable Housing Program will increase the availability of affordable housing, particularly for low-income households in the province. The program will enhance government systems to create an enabling environment that attracts private financing for mixed-income housing developments. It will also help the government better target subsidies of the Naya Pakistan Housing Program for low-income households. The program also incentivizes the integration of green building principles, climate resilience, accessibility, safety, and mobility of women in housing developments. The program will benefit approximately 77,000 households over the next five years, half of which will be low-income families living in urban areas.

March 11, 2022 (MLN): The State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) conducted an Open Market Operation today, in which it injected Rs2.6 trillion into the market for 7 days at 9.76 percent.

March 11, 2022 (MLN): Greentree Holdings Limited has acquired additional 2.94 million voting shares of TRG Pakistan Limited at the rate of Rs74.80 per share, a notice issued to the bourse showed today.

As per the notice, on account of this acquisition , Greentree’s total shareholding in TRG Pakistan has increased to 56,018,024 shares which represent 10.27% of the total issued voting shares of the company.

The company’s previous holding in TRG Pakistan was 53,077,377 shares.