The federal government’s ownership in Pakistan Petroleum Limited (PPL) has increased to 74.86% after more than 200 million shares were transferred back to the state in compliance with a Supreme Court ruling.

In a notice submitted to the Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX) on Wednesday, PPL said 200,057,318 ordinary shares held by the PPL Employees Empowerment Trust under the Benazir Employees Stock Option Scheme (BESOS) have been transferred to the Government of Pakistan.

The transfer was carried out under the Supreme Court’s decision in a series of constitutional petitions and civil appeals that declared the employee share scheme unlawful.

Following the transfer, the government’s direct stake in PPL has risen from 67.51% to 74.86%, further strengthening its control over one of Pakistan’s largest oil and gas exploration and production companies.

The BESOS scheme, introduced in 2009, was designed to grant shares to eligible employees of selected state-owned enterprises and companies in which the government held a significant interest.

In October 2020, however, the Supreme Court ruled that the scheme violated Article 154 of the Constitution and ordered that all shares and funds allocated under BESOS be returned to the Federal Consolidated Fund.

The latest transfer implements that judgment, resulting in a significant increase in the government’s shareholding in PPL.