IHCL Expands Partnership, Targets 25 Hotels in Indian Subcontinent by 2025

Mumbai, May 9 (PTI) Indian Hotels Company (IHCL) on Thursday announced a strategic partnership with CG Hospitality with a plan to grow its portfolio in the Indian sub-continent to 25 hotels by 2025, involving a total investment of around Rs 4,000 crore.

The portfolio of 25 properties by 2025, will include 11 operating hotels with 900 keys and will add another 14, which will be under one platform -- 'Ekyam' -- to pursue opportunities in destinations that offer adventure experiences across the Indian Ocean and Greater Himalayan regions and wildlife escapes, IHCL Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer Puneet Chhatwal told reporters.

IHCL's Vice President Commercial Ram Maheshwari will lead the 'Ekyam' platform, he added.

"We have a long-standing association with CG Hospitality, a member of the renowned CG Corp Global for over two decades. We are delighted to announce that the next phase of this partnership will pursue accelerated growth in the Indian sub-continent.

"This collaboration under the platform -- Ekyam -- will explore opportunities to manage hotels across regions around the Himalayas as well as Indian ocean and strengthen the wildlife sector," Chhatwal said.

The overall investment for this portfolio of 25 properties with 2,500 rooms, under the Ekyam platform, could get anywhere close to around Rs 4,000 crore, he added.

The current operating footprint in the Indian sub-continent and Middle East includes Taj Exotica Resort & Spa, Taj Coral Reef Resort & Spa in Maldives, Taj Samudra, Colombo, Sri Lanka, Taj Jumeirah Lakes Towers, Dubai and Taj Safaris, the wildlife luxury lodges in India and Nepal.

"The platform will commence with the current portfolio of 11 operating hotels. We have invested over Rs 1,250 crore in the operational and upcoming hotels thus far and are committed to onboard 14 more hotels under this partnership," CG Hospitality MD Rahul Chaudhary said.

Opportunities under this portfolio are immense and CG Hospitality is proud of the partnership with Tata Group's IHCL, spanning 25 years, Binod Chaudhary, Chairman, CG Corp Global, added.