Top hotels stay away from DIAL plot auction

New Delhi: Delhi International Airport (DIAL), the consortium which is modernising the Delhi international airport, has received little interest in the auction of 12 plots that include 9 sites for hotel development.
Most top names have stayed away and some plots have not received any expression of interest at all. A mix of luxury, mid-market, budget and convention hotels, as well as three other commercial plots are expected to be built on a total area of 45 acres.
An executive close to the development said the interest level for the plots was “fair”. As many as 17 companies put in 30 bids for the plots. The executive added there were at least two private equity majors that have submitted expression of interest. The bidding closed on December 15.
When the consortium originally floated the plan to auction plots, it had expected to raise over Rs 2,700 crore. However, realty experts now expect the amount to be much smaller.
An executive with a hotel company that has submitted a bid said: “The number of bids submitted could look decent at the outset but most bidders have submitted expression of interest for plots for mid-market and budget hotels. Several plots like the ones set aside to build five-star hotels have received little interest.”
23/12/08 Meenakshi Verma Ambwani & Chanchal Pal Chauhan/Economic Times

To Read the News in full at Source, Click the Headline

Categories: Airports Dec 2008