Pakistan weighs the options for the future of its emblematic Hotel in Roosevelt in New York, in particular the demolition of the centenary structure to build a skyscraper, as part of the larger privatization and commitments of the government towards the International Monetary Fund (IMF), reported Bloomberg, Us Outlet Bloomberg.
Muhammad Ali, Prime Minister’s advisor to privatization, confirmed to Bloomberg that multiple possibilities were being studied. “The government wants a joint venture where Pakistan will contribute the land and the partner will bring equity,” he told Islamabad. “The other option is to keep the hotel if it is economical.”
Ali added that the situation would become clearer in the coming months, once a joint venture partner is finalized and that the “market survey” is finished.
Under its IMF loan agreement of $ 7 billion, Pakistan is under pressure to restructure or privatize companies belonging to losses.
According to Bloomberg, the first major disinvestment could be Pakistan International Airlines (PIA), which has long been based on the government’s bailouts which are no longer sustainable.
“The advisor hopes that the national carrier will be sold by November,” said the report.
Ali told the publication that several of the largest groups of companies in the country were interested in acquiring PIA and had the capacity to overthrow it. He estimated that around half a billion dollars in investment would be necessary to rekindle the airline operations.
The government is also hiring advisers for the transaction of the Roosevelt hotel, a property that some have described as “the new Ellis island” for its historic role in the housing of migrants.
Bloomberg noted that the offers had been received from seven companies, including Citigroup Inc., CBRE Group Inc. and Savills PLC, and that a new adviser would be finalized later this month.
