By Staff Reporter
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan is pushing ahead with plans to transform its shuttered Roosevelt Hotel in midtown Manhattan into a high-rise tower through a joint venture that could involve as much as $5 billion in equity and debt financing, according to a top government official.
The move marks the latest effort to unlock value from one of the cash-strapped nation’s most prized overseas assets, a century-old property near Grand Central Terminal and Times Square that’s been closed since 2020 amid mounting losses. Owned by the state through Pakistan International Airlines, the hotel has long been a focal point in Islamabad’s broader push to reform state-owned enterprises as part of International Monetary Fund bailout conditions.
“The redevelopment project would require up to $5 billion equity and debt capital,” Muhammad Ali, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif’s aide on privatization and chairman of the Privatization Commission of Pakistan, said in an interview with Arab News. After a detailed study last year concluded the site could accommodate a much larger building, potentially up to 60 stories, the government opted against an outright sale, Ali said.
Instead, it’s pursuing a JV model designed to boost the property’s overall worth. “The redevelopment under the JV privatization model is expected to increase value of the property and thus Pakistan’s stake by more than 200 percent [in terms of value],” he said. Under the proposed structure, Pakistan would contribute the land, while a private partner provides equity, and the balance comes from debt financing, according to Ali.
That approach would lift the country’s economic interest in the project even as its ownership stake drops to around 50% post-transaction. Ali noted that a variety of international players, from commercial banks to technology companies, have shown interest in carving out space for their own operations at the redeveloped site, though he didn’t name any specific suitors.
The initiative comes amid a flurry of recent changes for the asset. Ownership of the Roosevelt was shifted to PIA Holding Company Limited, the parent of Pakistan International Airlines Corporation Limited. That airline was privatised just last month, with a consortium led by the Arif Habib Group taking control.
Pakistan’s handling of the New York property has been plagued by delays over the years, with successive administrations debating options like demolition, leasing or outright disposal amid evolving policy priorities. On Dec. 24, a day after sealing the PIA deal, Defence Minister Khawaja Asif told reporters the government was actively structuring a transaction for the hotel.
Separately, a privatization ministry official, speaking on condition of anonymity, said the country’s financial adviser for the potential sale—Jones Lang LaSalle Americas Inc., or JLL—has stepped down due to a “conflict of interest.” The resignation followed federal cabinet and Competition Commission of Pakistan approvals of the transaction structure in July. “The Privatization Commission will finalize the new adviser in the next four to six weeks,” the official said, adding that expressions of interest would follow the appointment. Ali confirmed that the incoming adviser would take the lead in courting potential JV partners on Islamabad’s behalf.
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