Melb hotel projects sold

HONG Kong private equity firm Gaw Capital Partners has taken over a major Melbourne hotel site as part of a stragetic move into the Australian market.

The Bell City mixed-use development in the northern suburb of Preston has been purchased via the firm’s hospitality arm GCP Hospitality for $157 million, with plans to introduce new facilities including restaurants and social areas.

The property currently houses two hotels under the Mantra and BreakFree brands, with a total of 844 rooms.

It also has conference facilities, commercial tenancies and serviced offices.

“In addition to giving us a foothold in the Melbourne market, this major hospitality asset will allow us to effectively roll out multiple concepts within the same project,” said Gaw Capital Partners president Kenneth Gaw.

“After this acquisition, we look forward to further expansion opportunities in the Australia market,” he said.

MEANWHILE, a hotel development in Melbourne’s CBD has reportedly been sold off the plan for $91.3 million.

The Australian Financial Review says the 30-storey project has been sold by developer BPM to Indian aviation and travel giant InterGlobe Enterprises.

The development involves a 241-room hotel on the corner of Flinders Lane and King Street which will be managed by TFE Hotels under its Quincy brand.

Construction is due to begin in the last half of this year.

InterGlobe was founded by billionaries Kapil and Rahul Bhatia who also founded Indian low-cost carrier IndiGo.

The company also owns 16 hotels across India.