Hotel giant committed to working with Tyrone firm to find new sites

IRISH hotel giant Dalata Group plc has said it’s continuing to work with Co Tyrone building firm McAleer and Rushe on identifying potential new sites around Great Britain.

Dalata Group deputy chief executive Dermot Crowley spoke as the business announced the acquisition of a new hotel in London.

It’s paying £91m to acquire the long-term leasehold interest in a new-build hotel in Aldgate, London. The hotel is due to be completed in November.

Dalata Group owns four hotels in Northern Ireland, including a Maldron Hotel which opened in the city centre in March. It also owns the Clayton Hotel in Ormeau Avenue, as well as Maldron at Belfast International Airport and another in Derry.

Mr Crowley said the group had no plans for any more hotel openings in Northern Ireland.

And he said the lack of a Northern Ireland devolved government could influence the future performance of the hotel market here.

He told the Belfast Telegraph: “I don’t want to get into a discussion on politics in Northern Ireland but it would certainly help if there was a government there — and that’s the case with any jurisdiction.

“Having said that, we are happy with our Clayton Hotel and our Maldron, which has been open since March.

“But hotels are where businesspeople stay and if a lack of government is negative for the economy then it’s not good for hotels.”

He said that as the company’s latest acquisition in London was close to completion, there was no role for its long-standing construction partner, Co Tyrone building firm McAleer and Rushe.

“We had become aware that the private equity real estate investor which had owned it, might be interested in selling so we approached them off-market.”

But he said the company would continue to look around the UK for new hotel opportunities with McAleer and Rushe.

“We have started work on a Maldron Hotel in Birmingham and we are also developing a new property, a Clayton Bristol, and we do look right around the UK with them in the large cities. We work very closely with them.”

Its newest London hotel will be branded Clayton Hotel Aldgate London. It will be located beside Aldgate East Underground Station and close to the new Liverpool Street and Whitechapel Crossrail stations.

There are already two Clayton hotels in Chiswick and Cricklewood in London.

In a statement, Mr Crowley said: “London remains a key gateway city in Europe that will continue to benefit from the growth in international travel...

“This announcement represents another very important milestone in the growth of Dalata in the UK. We now have a pipeline of almost 2,000 rooms across key UK cities such as London, Birmingham, Glasgow, Manchester and Bristol.”

❝ London remains a key gateway city that will benefit from the growth of international travels