ISLAMABAD: Pakistan will auction prime land in Islamabad in December to developers who pay nothing upfront and instead offer the government a share of their completed projects, Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi said on Friday, encouraging Saudi investors to take part.

Naqvi said the government would auction “one of the most expensive plots for hotels, malls, residential complexes,” with bidding starting at 15 percent of a project’s “inventory,” a term commonly used in Pakistan’s property sector for the saleable units in a development.

Naqvi was speaking at the Saudi–Pakistan Real Estate Exhibition in Lahore, which brings together developers and investors from both countries. The model, in which the state provides land in exchange for a share of the finished buildings, comes as Pakistan seeks to draw Saudi investment beyond its longstanding financial and security ties with the Kingdom, and more long-term capital into its property sector.

“A lot of people complain that the land of Islamabad is very expensive, and it’s a fact,” Naqvi said. “But the interesting thing is that it will be free of cost, there will be no money, we will not be asking for any money.”

“I am very much sure that we will have some good investors from Saudi Arabia also,” he added.

The plots will range from one to six acres. Developers must complete their projects within three years of approval, and buildings must be at least 600 feet tall, according to Naqvi.

The interior ministry will handle approvals within three to four weeks, he said, so that investors do not have to deal with other government offices.

To reassure investors, the auction will be overseen by a five-member committee that includes the National Accountability Bureau, the Special Investment Facilitation Council, the Federal Investigation Agency and the Capital Development Authority. It will be headed by a judge. Naqvi acknowledged that some investors had had “very few, but some bad stories” in the past.

“All the people who can bother you in the future will be part of that auction committee,” he said.

Naqvi also announced plans for a 1,000-acre district in Islamabad modeled on Manhattan, with its own laws and rules, built around a central park and a lake. The government is also planning a 450-acre safari park, which he said would be Asia’s largest.

The three-day exhibition, which ends on Friday, features Saudi firms showcasing projects in Makkah and Madinah. It follows Saudi Arabia’s easing of foreign property ownership rules in January. Prince Mansour bin Mohammed Al Saud, chairman of the Saudi–Pakistan Business Council, is among the participants.

Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb told Arab News last November that Saudi Arabia’s signaled $10 billion investment appetite for Pakistan remained unchanged, as Riyadh moves away from central bank deposits and deferred oil facilities toward equity-based investment.