Hascol board approves modified scheme of arrangement as it looks to deal with debts

The board of directors at Hascol Petroleum Limited on Monday approved a modified draft Scheme of Arrangement, the company shared in a notice to the Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX).

“We are pleased to inform that the board of directors at its meeting held on 13 March 2023 has approved a modified/updated draft Scheme of Arrangement prepared under Sections 279 to 282 and 285 of the Companies Act, 2017 (the “modified scheme”) which encapsulates certain amendments/suggestions proposed by the secured creditors of the Company,” read the notice.

The OMC shared that the modified scheme will be presented to its secured creditors for the requisite approval, followed by the members of the company, “after which the same shall be filed / submitted to the High Court of Sindh at Karachi for necessary steps (or as otherwise advised by the Company’s legal counsel)”.

Hascol has filed a scheme of arrangement under which its debts can be formally restructured within the court system.

Last year in January, the Federal Investigation Agency arrested Mumtaz Hasan, founder of Hascol Petroleum Limited, as part of its investigation into an alleged Rs54-billion scam.

“The FIA Commercial Banking Circle has registered a case against 30 suspects – including former and current officers of the National Bank of Pakistan and Hascol – and one suspect has been arrested after pieces of evidence came to light in an inquiry into bank default, financial fraud and money laundering of more than Rs54 billion by the Hascol Petroleum Company,” read a FIA statement back then.

Last month, as many as 16 officials of the National Bank of Pakistan (NBP) and petroleum companies, etc., were placed in judicial custody for their alleged involvement in the Rs54 billion ‘biggest financial scam’ after a Special Banking Court rejected their interim bails on February 20, 2023.

Earlier, Hascol’s board authorised Chief Financial Officer Amad Uddin to exercise authority as Chief Executive Officer (CEO) after the trial judge refused confirmation of bail applications of CEO Aqeel Ahmed Khan along with others.