ABS & Co is pleased to have advised DW Pakistan, an associated company of Daewoo Pakistan in its acquisition of Heavy Electrical Complex (HEC), one of Pakistan’s largest state-owned power equipment manufacturers, as part of the government’s strategic privatization programme.

Audit objections are frequently raised after award and execution of public contracts. They can trigger demands for repayment or recalculation of amounts that were priced and agreed at tender stage. Recent matters in large infrastructure procurement illustrate the legal position: the Public Procurement Rules 2004 require procuring agencies to issue precise and unambiguous bidding documents, and once a contract is awarded on that basis, the agreed terms govern the parties’ rights and obligations. Attempts to re-open price adjustment inputs or to substitute a different basis after execution cut across the statutory scheme for transparent and competitive procurement.

ABS & Co played an instrumental role in preparing the preliminary draft of the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Eco-Tourism Rules, 2025, a first-of-its-kind framework aligning Pakistan’s tourism sector with global sustainability standards.

ABS & Co prepared Pakistan’s first National Cybersecurity Bill, aimed at regulating Cybersecurity Service Providers and establishing National and Regional Cybersecurity Response Teams to effectively address cybersecurity threats. The bill was drafted for National Computer Emergency Response Team (NCERT).

ABS & Co recently advised and represented an international client, based in Hong Kong, in a complex cross-border commercial dispute arising in Pakistan. The matter involved contested payment obligations where traditional litigation avenues risked being both protracted and commercially disruptive. The client entrusted ABS & Co with safeguarding its financial interests while ensuring a timely and commercially efficient resolution.

ABS & Co undertook a comprehensive review of Zambia’s Public-Private Partnership (PPP) legal framework against the internationally recognized APMG PPP Guide, delivering strategic insights for aligning national law with global best practices. This assignment was carried out for a Pakistan-based client seeking to invest across multiple sectors in Zambia, with the objective of ensuring that the country’s PPP regime is equipped to support sustainable, transparent, and investor-friendly projects.

ABS & Co successfully represented KTC before the Appellate Tribunal Inland Revenue (ATIR), Peshawar Bench, in multiple connected appeals challenging substantial tax assessments imposed under Section 122 of the Income Tax Ordinance, 2001. The firm’s tax litigation team demonstrated that the assessment proceedings suffered from procedural and legal infirmities, including the absence of recorded reasons, lack of opportunity of hearing, and non-speaking orders. Upon considering the submissions and documentary evidence, the Tribunal set aside the impugned assessment orders, vacating tax liabilities exceeding PKR 3 billion.

Our October 2025 legal update highlights recent legislative and judicial developments across Pakistan, including an overview of the Pakistan Land Port Authority Act, 2025 and the Sindh High Court’s decision in Pakistan State Oil Company Limited v. M/s Gillani (Pvt.) Ltd.

ABS & Co was engaged by the Punjab Cattle Market Management & Development Company (PCMMDC) to lead its ambitious digital reform agenda. At the heart of this transformation was the development of the first-of-its-kind E-Auction Policy, which revolutionized the way collection rights for cattle markets across Punjab are auctioned.

ABS & Co has been engaged by the Capital Development Authority (CDA) as Transaction Advisors, alongside consortium partners KPMG and Nayyar Ali Dada & Associates, to provide comprehensive legal advisory services for the operationalization of the Ghandhara Heritage and Citizens Club at Islamabad.

ABS & Co is pleased to have recently advised Sazgar Engineering Works Limited, a leading Pakistani three-wheeler manufacturer and pioneer in low-emission and electric mobility solutions, in its expansion into international markets by handling the full cycle of international supply chain arrangements and cross-border contractual, regulatory, and compliance matters critical to its global strategy.

This third article in a three-part series, prepared in collaboration with Penningtons Manches Cooper, focuses on the enforcement of foreign arbitral awards in Pakistan and the scope of the public policy exception. It traces the evolution of Pakistan’s arbitration framework following the enactment of the Recognition and Enforcement (Arbitration Agreements and Foreign Arbitral Awards) Act, 2011, examines the Supreme Court’s landmark clarification in Taisei Corporation vs. A.M. Construction Company, and highlights how recent jurisprudence has aligned Pakistan with international enforcement standards under the New York Convention.

This second article in a three-part series, produced in collaboration with Penningtons Manches Cooper, examines the enforceability of Take-or-Pay clauses in Pakistan’s energy sector. In light of rising energy costs, declining demand for grid-based electricity, and the Government’s decision to prematurely terminate several Power Purchase Agreements (PPAs), it explores how Pakistani courts, including the Supreme Court, have addressed disputes arising from such clauses. By analyzing recent case law, including the landmark Orient Power decision, it highlights judicial trends that shape contractual risk allocation, investor protection, and the long-term sustainability of energy projects in a rapidly evolving market.

The Punjab Finance Act, 2025, presented to the Provincial Assembly of Punjab on June 16, 2025, has brought transformative changes to the sales tax regime under the Punjab Sales Tax on Services Act, 2012 (the “Act”). The most significant structural amendment is the shift from a positive list-based taxation model to a negative list regime.

The Finance Act 2025 has revised the rate of withholding tax on services under section 153(1)(b) of the Income Tax Ordinance, 2001. Although this is a fiscal amendment, it has practical implications for long-term commercial agreements, particularly in the power and infrastructure sectors where Change in Law provisions are an essential part of contractual risk allocation. The Finance Act provides a useful example of how such provisions are applied in practice.

This first article in a three-part series considers recent decisions by the English courts on the enforcement of arbitral awards from Pakistan. Produced in collaboration with leading Pakistan law firm, ABS & Co, it examines the volatile nature of the energy sector in Pakistan, highlighting the risks arising from the termination of Power Purchase Agreements (PPAs) with the Government of Pakistan or its state-owned enterprises, in a period where the country is transitioning towards solar power and the contractual terms (including Take-or-Pay clauses) are proving to be financially unsustainable.