STAFF REPORT IBD: The Etisalat and the government of Pakistan are soon to resolve the long pending payment dispute of $800 million, Dr. Mirza Ikhtiar Baig, Advisor to Pakistans PM on Textile and Chairman of Pak-UAE Business Council, reported has given the impression.
According to a report, the resolution involves a mechanism agreed by both the parties, under which Etisalat will deduct the market price of those properties that Pakistan has failed to transfer.
“We proposed an out of the box solution to this longstanding dispute and hopefully the issue will be settled soon,” stated Dr. Mirza told the media.
He explained that the government is unable to transfer about 136 properties to PTCL due to encroachments and legal cases. “Now, we have evaluated the market price of the disputed properties and this amount will be deducted from the pending final payment of the $2.6 billion deal signed in 2006,” he said.
“There is still a difference of opinion on evaluated market price of the disputed properties. The UAE side will soon submit its report and the issue will be resolved within weeks,” he added.