Lahore High Court clears Pakistan's first SPAC merger, putting solar firm NGLE on course for PSX listing

The Lahore High Court has sanctioned the merger of LSE SPAC I Limited into Ningbo Green Light Energy Limited, the last legal step before Pakistan's first stock market listing through a special purpose acquisition company. The court approved the scheme of arrangement on 30 September, and a notice to the Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX) dated 13 October set out the timetable. Ningbo Green Light Energy, known as NGLE, is due to begin trading on 26 October under the symbol NGLE, subject to regulatory approvals.

Ningbo is the surviving company. Holders of LSE SPAC I shares receive 1.5 NGLE shares for each share they own, 39,000,003 shares in total. Existing NGLE shareholders hold 165,852,744 shares, which takes issued capital after the merger to 204,852,747 shares. About 40 percent of the shares, or 81.94 million, is estimated to be free float, pending PSX verification. Sponsors will hold about 60 percent, and authorised capital rises to Rs2.1 billion.

Trading dates

Trading in LSE SPAC I shares ended on 20 October, which was also the entitlement date. Share transfer books close on 21 and 22 October. The listing date stays tentative until the regulatory approvals and the increase in authorised capital are complete.

Why a SPAC

LSE SPAC I is a subsidiary of LSE Capital Limited. It raised Rs250 million in an initial public offering earlier this year and used the money to buy a stake of about 19 percent in NGLE. The merger now brings the whole company onto the exchange.

LSE Capital chief executive Aftab Ahmad Chaudhry has argued that Pakistan's traditional IPO market has largely served mature, established companies, and that SPACs can help growth stage firms that are too small for a conventional offering.

Bloomberg data show that 13 initial public offerings have raised a combined Rs23.1 billion so far in 2026, a record for the market.

What NGLE does

NGLE is a Lahore based solar company, incorporated in April 2018 and converted to a public limited company in December 2024. It designs, installs and maintains solar systems for homes, businesses, institutions and farms, works as a system integrator and EPC contractor, and says it has completed projects totalling more than 300 MW since 2018. It also offers a financing model that lets customers install solar without paying the full cost upfront.

Its results for the year to June 2026 show a company that is smaller in sales but stronger on the balance sheet. Revenue fell 7.6 percent to Rs1.58 billion from Rs1.71 billion, and profit after tax fell about 25 percent to Rs144.02 million from Rs191.97 million. Borrowings dropped about 60.6 percent to Rs67.84 million, and net worth rose to Rs1.81 billion from Rs1.43 billion.

NGLE's opening price will be based on the LSE SPAC I closing price on 20 October, and the company's 28 October annual meeting will not be held because the merged entity is expected to have ceased to exist by then.