Pakistan National Shipping Corporation

The Pakistan National Shipping Corporation (PNSC) is a Pakistani national flag carrier headquartered in Karachi. In 2022 under the chairmanship of Rizwan Ahmed, PNSC recorded its total deadweight tonnage (DWT) at 1,045,657 metric tons which is to date the highest ever carrying capacity achieved since its inception. The corporation is principally engaged in the business of shipping, including charter of vessels, transportation of cargo and providing commercial, technical, administrative, financial and other services to its subsidiaries and third parties.

The Chairman of PNSC is appointed by the Prime Minister of Pakistan and is usually a high-ranking civil servant or naval admiral. Officers who have served as Chairman PNSC include Pakistan Administrative Service bureaucrats Rizwan Ahmed and Shakeel Ahmed Mangnejo, Admiral Tauqir Hussain Naqvi, Admiral Yastur-ul-Haq Malik, Admiral Saeed Mohammad Khan and Admiral Mansurul Haq.

PNSC, headquartered in Karachi, is under the administrative control of the Federal Ministry of Maritime Affairs. A regional office based in Lahore caters to upcountry shipping requirements. The corporation also has an extensive overseas network of agents looking after its worldwide shipping business. The Pakistan Merchant Navy is the fleet of state-owned merchant vessels flying the flag of Pakistan National Shipping Corporation.

The Pakistan Merchant Navy was formed after independence in 1947 when Pakistan inherited a fleet of four privately owned cargo ships. The Ministry of Maritime Affairs, Mercantile Marine Department and Government Shipping Office established by the Government of Pakistan were authorised to flag the ships and also ensured that the vessels were seaworthy.

In 1963, the National Shipping Ordinance was promulgated and National Shipping Corporation (NSC) was established which procured its first used ship, M.V. Rupsa in 1965. The national fleet comprised some 53 vessels which were owned by 10 private shipping companies. The national fleet grew to 71 vessels before the separation of East Pakistan and its emergence as Bangladesh in 1971 when the number declined to 57 vessels after the separation.

On 1 January 1974, President of Pakistan Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto nationalised Chittagong Steamship Corporation and Trans-Oceanic Steamship Company, owned by Dinshaw family; East & West Steamship Company, owned by Cowasjee family; Muhammadi Steamship Company Limited and Gulf Shipping Corp Ltd, owned by Valika family; United Oriental Steamship Company, owned by Chinioti Buksh family; Pan Islamic Shipping, owned by Saudis; Crescent Shipping, owned by Crescent Group; and National Shipping Corporation (NSC). Nine private shipping companies with a total of 26 ships were nationalised. The national fleet strength increased to 51 vessels including 26 ships under the management of nine nationalised companies and 25 ships with the state-owned NSC.

In 1977, 14 ships were inducted in the Pakistan Shipping Corporation (PSC) during the Fifth Five-Year Plan. Two years later, NSC and PSC were merged to form the Pakistan National Shipping Corporation (PNSC) which still remains the sole state-owned shipping corporation.

Later other nationalised companies were also merged into a single company as the Pakistan National Shipping Corporation, incorporated under the provisions of the Pakistan National Shipping Corporation Ordinance of 1979 and the Companies Ordinance of 1984, respectively. The total fleet strength increased to 60 ships with the induction of 14 vessels in the late 1970s and early 1980s. PNSC enjoyed a complete monopoly till the early 1990s when the shipping sector was deregulated by the Nawaz Sharif government.