Australia’s largest hotel owner Tourism Asset Holdings Limited (TAHL) has sold its 31 hotels to the Abu Dhabi Investment Authority for AUD$800 million.
The properties, under the Pullman, Novotel, Mercure and ibis brands, are leased (29) or managed (2) by Accor Asia Pacific on a long-term basis.
The purchase, not confirmed, but suggested to be AUD$800 million by The Australian and Australian Financial Review newspapers, is a record-breaking transaction and adds to the Abu Dhabi Investment Authority’s significant bank of hotel assets worldwide.
Properties in the sale included: Novotel and ibis, Sydney Darling Harbour; Novotel and ibis Sydney Olympic Park; Pullman Sydney Olympic Park; ibis Sydney Airport; Mercure Parramatta; Novotel Langley Perth; Novotel Canberra; Mercure Treasury Gardens Melbourne; ibis Melbourne; Mercure Broome; 13 ibus Budget hotels throughout the Australian eastern seaboard; and 8 ibis Styles hotels in Western Australia, Northern Territory and Queensland.
TAHL was formed in 1993 (founded by Accor Asia Pacific honorary Chairman and HM Awards Hall of Fame member David Baffsky), listed on the ASX in 2006 and privatized in 2002 by a consortium that included Babcock and Brown and Accor Hotels.
“We chose to run a discreet, targeted sale process and we were very pleased with the response we received, which is a testament to the strength and performance of the underlying portfolio,” TAHL’S Chief Executive Officer, Matthew Eady, told The Australian and Australian Financial Review newspapers.
“This sale is the culmination of a successful four-year strategy since taking TAHL’s platform independent since 2009.”
Accor’s leases on the properties run until 2020, with options to extend until 2030.
The sale comes just weeks after Korean firm Mirae Asset Global Investments purchased the Four Seasons Hotel Sydney for AUD$340 million from Eureka Funds Management, the latest in a string of major hotel sales in Australia.