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| Edited By: Ashish K Tiwari |Source: DNA |Updated: Mar 17, 2018, 04:45 AM IST
French hospitality major Accor and its Indian joint partner InterGlobe have sold 36% stake in an investment fund floated by them to Pacifica Partners, a company related to GIC of Singapore, for an undisclosed sum.
The fund will initially hold 7 hospitality assets of Accor and InterGlobe in India. The balance stake in the fund will be held by Accor and InterGlobe in equal proportion of 32%.
Peter Meyer, managing director of Pacifica Partners, said at this time, India is one of the most attractive lodging growth opportunities in the world. “Pacifica views this fund as an excellent vehicle to take advantage of this compelling market by teaming up with Accor and InterGlobe.”
Pacifica Partners is the asset manager for the JV hotel investment company between an affiliate of the real estate arm of the Government of Singapore Investment Corporation, and Host Hotels and Resorts, the NYSE-listed largest lodging real estate investment trust in the world.
Representing 1,750 rooms, the 7 hotels of the fund which would start receiving guests between 2011 and 2013, will be approximately valued at $325 million once work on them is completed.
Michael Issenberg, chairman & COO, Accor - Asia Pacific, told DNA Money that with the establishment of the fund, a new blue chip investor in the form of Pacifica is taking a key stake. “Pacifica will bring fresh capital for investment for further expansion in India, particularly in the mid and upscale segments,” he said.
The fund also plans to increase the corpus and add more properties. “The fund will acquire hospitality assets opportunistically through a number of means including those managed by Accor,” said Issenberg.
In India, Accor is deploying hotel brands ranging from luxury through to budget offering. It plans 43 hotels in the country, including those under the investment fund.
A majority of these hotels are under construction and 25 would be completed in 2 years. On Accor’s JV with Emaar-MGF for its budget brand Formule 1, Issenberg said, “We are now developing the Formule 1 hotels in India on our own. Seven sites have been acquired with construction beginning on several of these sites. Negotiations continue for purchases for expansion.”
