Pak to sell New York's Roosevelt Hotel to buy PIA planes

Islamabad, Feb.17 : Pakistan's Cabinet Committee on Privatisation (CCoP) has directed the country's Privatisation Commission (PC) to consider the sale of the Roosevelt Hotel in New York so that more planes can be bought for Pakistan International Airlines (PIA), its international carrier.

Sources said the committee has asked the Privatisation Commission to approach Citibank, which is the financial adviser to disinvest Roosevelt Hotel, and to "maximise the proceeds" for the transaction so that Pakistan International Airlines could buy new aircraft.

The financial adviser, according to a Dawn report, would now have to come up with new details to privatise the hotel otherwise it would not be put up for sale in the near future.

Caretaker Prime Minister Mohammedmian Soomro chaired the meeting.

When contacted PIA chairman Zafar Ahmad Khan told Dawn that he could not say anything about the price of the hotel and that it was to be determined and decided by the Privatisation Commission.

Khan said the PIA wanted to purchase new aircraft by selling the Roosevelt Hotel and that the objective was to reduce the financial difficulties of the corporation.

ANI