EIH plans new hotels

By OUR CORRESPONDENT

Kolkata

Aug. 14: The EIH Limited, the flagship company of the Oberoi Group, is planning to set up two new five star deluxe properties, one at Bengaluru and another at Goa. The projects will cost around Rs 650 crore.

In addition, the Oberoi Group is also planning to establish the Trident brand of hotels with a renewed vigour. The group will also open 12 new hotels with 2,740-rooms under both brands in India and abroad, over next three-and-half years.

The chairman of EIH Limited, Mr P.R.S. Oberoi, said, "The proposed five star deluxe property at Bengaluru will come under The Oberoi brand and will have 400-room. The Goa property will have 75-room and will also be branded as The Oberoi. We have got eight acres of land at Bengaluru and 50 acre at Goa for setting up these hotels."

The debt-equity ratio of the projects will be 2:1.

The company is also planning to set up a 100-room luxury hotel along with 40 villas at Marrakesh in Morocco. The project will involve an investment of $ 5 million.

Mr Oberoi also hinted that new Trident hotels which would come under EIH Associated Hotels Limited. The strategic alliance between The Oberoi Group and Hilton International for marketing and co-branding of Trident Hotels in India came to an end on March 31, 2008. Thereafter all Trident Hilton hotels had been re-branded as Trident hotels.

"We want to take Trident brand overseas. The Middle East may be one of the locations," Mr Oberoi revealed. The Oberoi Group is also planning to set up a 300-room Trident hotel at Kolkata.

Among the 12 new hotels, which will be operational in three and half years, two will be completely owned by the Group. Two Trident hotels, one each at Bangalore and Hyderabad and another luxury property under The Oberoi brand at Hyderabad, which are under construction are under joint venture. Management contracts have been signed for the remaining hotels.