IHCL ties up with Singapore's GIC to invest Rs 4,000 cr in hotel acquisitions

Tata Group's hospitality arm IHCL Friday said it has tied up with Singapore's sovereign wealth fund GIC to invest Rs 4,000 crore to acquire hotels. The Indian Hotels Company (IHCL) will put in 30 per cent equity in every such acquisition, while the rest will come from GIC, according to an official statement. Investments will be done over the next three years and the joint platform will look at potential hotel assets in India, it said, adding fully operational hotels in the luxury, upper upscale and upscale segments in India.

"This collaboration is in line with Aspiration 2022 and our vision to scale up, create greater enterprise value and make IHCL South Asia's most iconic and profitable hospitality company," IHCL's managing director and chief executive Puneet Chhatwal said. The company, which runs hospitality brands including Taj, Vivanta and Ginger expects to acquire strategic and marquee assets that need new ownership, branding and positioning through the platform, he said.

Each acquisition is intended to be in a separate special purpose vehicle with its own funding, the statement said, adding that hotels acquired will be managed by IHCL under its various brands and complement the company's current growth aspirations via management contracts.

"As a long-term investor, we are confident on the outlook of India's hospitality sector. We look forward to working closely with established partners such as IHCL to pursue attractive opportunities and capture the sector's growth potential," GIC Real Estate's chief investment officer Kok Sun Lee said.

The IHCL scrip was trading 1.44 per cent up at Rs 143.95 apiece on the BSE.