Pakistanis will be able to book BYD vehicles from October

Mega Motor Company, a wholly owned subsidiary of Pakistan's Hubco, will open bookings for BYD vehicles by October end, Hubco CEO Kamran Kamal announced during an analyst briefing on Thursday.

An adequate charging structure would be ready by the time the deliveries of the full and hybrid electric vehicles are made, he said, adding that the company would try to deliver them as soon as possible.

“We are in advance stage of negotiations with two leading oil marketing companies and locations have also been identified for setting up charging stations. There will also be charging facilities at homes and commercial chargers at malls and highways.”

Mega Motor has a distribution agreement with BYD Auto Industry Company for launching its New Energy Vehicles (NEVs) in Pakistan.

Mega Motor is also negotiating a technical licensing agreement with BYD and plans to establish an assembly plant in Karachi. “We are targeting the completion of the local assembly plant by 2026,” Kamal added.

Hubco’s diversification

Moreover, Hubco plans to explore opportunities for development of copper mines in Balochistan’s Chaghi through a joint-venture agreement with Ark Metals.

The company is also exploring E&P business opportunities both locally and internationally through its JV company Prime Oil & Gas.

Hubco is aggressively participating in bids submission for renewable projects, including KE’s 200 megawatts wind-solar hybrid project as well as 150 and 120MW projects under the Sindh Solar Energy Project.

The briefing was informed that Hubco’s joint venture — China Power Hub Generation Company (CPHGC) — disbursed its second dividend of $80 million in May.

The company’s Thar coal-based power plants — Thar Energy and ThalNova — completed their first full year of operations, which contributed to Hubco’s increased consolidated earnings.

Hubco also announced a net profit of PKR 75.29 billion ($268.89 million) for the year ended June 30, up 21.4% compared to the profit of PKR 62 billion in the previous year.

Speaking of Engro’s potential exit from Sindh Engro Coal Mining Company (SECMS), Hubco’s CEO stated that the company would take over operational control of Thar mines if that happened.

Hubco’s management also informed the briefing that the company was in negotiations to acquire HBL’s stake in SECMC, which would increase Hubco’s stake in the mining company from 8% to 17.5%.