HVS EMEA Hospitality Enews - Week Ending 3 August 2007
Morgan Makes Move For Motel One | Morgan Stanley Real Estate (MSRE) has made its first investment in the budget hotel sector in Europe. A special occasion, then, and appropriately enough MSRE’s Special Situations Fund III was called into action to pay an undisclosed sum for a 35% stake in the holding company Motel One Management. The subject of the fund’s acquisition controls the properties and operations of the chain Motel One,...
Kingdom Comes To Seychelles | A resort to be developed at a cost of some US$137 million is set to open in 2011 on Praslin, one of the islands that forms Seychelles. Kingdom Hotel Investments will have a stake of 91.2% in the Raffles Seychelles Resort and Residences, which will offer a luxury hotel of 90 villas, and 17 private residential villas for sale; Kingdom expects to have sold these within three years of the hotel’s opening. The site covers 300,000 m² of the northeast of the island and has a beachfront of 500 m. The hotel will be Kingdom’s first in Seychelles.
The Ascott Group In The Saddle In Kazakhstan | Tsesna Corporation has a range of interests and one of them is in construction and real estate. The company is building in its native Kazakhstan at the moment and two of the projects are destined to be serviced residences managed by The Ascott Group. The Ascott Astana, which will have around 200 units, is in the centre of the capital Astana and the Citadines Aktau, with 120 units, will rise in the west in the city of Aktau. Both properties are set to open in the first half of 2009 and will mark the start of what The Ascott Group and Tsesna hope will be a fruitful strategic partnership.
Rezidor Sells Stake In Radisson SAS Tallinn | Rezidor Hotel Group has made a capital gain of €3.2 million from the sale of its 14.1% stake in RDS Hotelli, which owns the Radisson SAS Hotel, Tallinn in Estonia. The sale gives the British investor Boultbee 100% of the real estate but it does not affect Rezidor’s management contract with Astlanda Hotelli, the operator of the 280-room hotel. Only a few Radisson SAS hotels are of royal descent, so the city of Dublin is privileged to welcome a Radisson SAS Royal hotel to its streets. The 150-room de luxe property, which, as befits a royal hotel, stands next to Dublin Castle, shares the Republic of Ireland with ten Radisson SAS commoners.
Rocco Rebrand | The Rocco Forte Collection: all your favourite luxury hotels – just under a different name, that’s all. The former Rocco Forte Hotels decided on the rebrand to reflect how far the company had come in ten years and to emphasise that like collectables each hotel has its individual character. The Rocco Forte Collection currently has nine hotels in operation, with Le Richemond in Geneva due to re-enter the fold in September after its renovation and The Charles Hotel expected to open in Munich in October.
Capital Plans For Turkey | Capital Partners, a real estate investment company based in Kazakhstan, has Kazkommertsbank as its main backer in what is said to be one of the largest tourist developments ever conceived in Turkey. A site of almost 5 million m² in Bozbuk, near Milâs, in the southwest of the country, is to have a reported US$1.5 billion spent on it. The money will provide five hotels and private housing; the whole development should be finished in 2012.
Sol Meliá Brings First-Half Sunshine | Sol Meliá can stay out in its deckchair for a little bit longer for the remainder of the summer, safe in the knowledge that it is protected by its first-half results and its positive outlook for Spain for the rest of the season. The company saw its EBITDA rise by 7.1% in the first six months of 2007, to €148.4 million, and its revenue climb by 9.4%, to €635.7 million. The forecast for Bulgaria is that the country can expect a light shower of three hotels (Bulgaria’s first Sol Meliá properties) this year and another three in 2008. The six hotels will bring a total of 2,700 rooms.
The Fifth Annual International Hotel Conference | As the proverb says, “all roads lead to Rome”; so you have no excuse for not finding your way to the fifth annual International Hotel Conference. The Rome Cavalieri Hilton is your host for the three-day event, which begins on 17 October with an optional vineyard tour and ends with participants drunk on the words of the many distinguished speakers. HVS is providing two full-bodied numbers: Russell Kett, the managing director of the London office, who will be moderating a panel taking a comprehensive look at economic indicators and hotel trends, and Steve Rushmore, the president of HVS, who will be speaking on “Global Trends that Impact Hotel Investments”. Interested parties are invited to get their noses into the website
Absolute Share Price Performance Over the Past Week 26 July-2 August 2007
- NH Hoteles - The share price, having risen against the prevailing slide of the Madrid market, fell slightly on news that NH had signed a syndicated loan of €650 million with 34 banks.
- Accor - The share price fell on news that Accor had sold its Italian catering business Gemeaz Cusin Ristorazione for €135 million.
- Whitbread - Mitchells and Butlers revealed a delay in its plans to spin off its pub and restaurant business, news which impacted on Whitbread's share price.
Charles Human, MD Investment Services at
Dominique Bourdais, Director at
Christopher Mumford, MD Executive Search at
Laurent de Kousemaeker, Director at