Hotel Properties’ (HPL) Associated Firm Buys Castello del Nero Tuscany for €39.5m

Date: November 2018

Location: Tuscany, Italy

Name: Castello del Nero

No. of Keys: 51 plus land/scope to build-out Villas

Seller: Landcastle Holdings

Buyer: Hotel Properties Limited (HPL) on Monday said that its associated company plans to buy for an estimated 22.6 million euros (S$35.4 million) the freehold interest of a 740-acre site in Tuscany, Italy that is occupied by a five-star hotel and a fully consecrated chapel.

HPL are a substantial hotel owner/management company with interests in (some) Concorde Hotels, Hard Rock Hotels, The Boutique Collection and Gili Lananfushi, all in Asia, and through it’s associated companies COMO Hotels, 12 Four Seasons hotels, 3 Hilton hotels (two in the UK) and a couple of Holiday Inns in Vanuatu and the Maldives!

The purchase of the site was made through buying up the entire corporate capital and voting rights of Castello del Nero, a company incorporated in Italy. This was done via a wholly owned unit of Leisure Ventures, in turn an associated company of HPL.

Ong Beng Seng, the managing director and the controlling shareholder of HPL, is deemed to be interested in the balance 50 per cent of interest in Leisure Ventures.

The final purchase price will be adjusted once the company accounts for the net working capital available in Castello del Nero. The wholly owned unit of Leisure Ventures will also discharge the entire indebtedness/shareholders’ loans of Castello of 16.9 million euros.

This purchase by HPL will be funded through loans and internal resources.

The site also includes a separate 12-apartment agro-tourism accommodation, vineyards and olive trees producing grapes and olive oil for sale, as well as five additional residences that comes with consent for refurbishment into independent villas.

The company said that the deal will allow HPL to further diversify its hotel portfolio geographically, and will “leverage on the wealth of experience of Ong Beng Seng and associates in hotel investment, as well as to share the investment risks”.

Price: €22.6m plus €16.9m = €39.5m

Price per key: €774,510

THPT Comment: HPL/Como – Serious player with 35 hotels adds nicely with Castello. THPT are proud to have been involved with the marketing of this property.

Forbes report that Ong Beng Seng and his wife Christina Ong  as being 16th richest people in Singapore. They also own the Mulberry handbag-maker in London. At 73 Mr Ong Beng Seng shows no sign of slowing down!

First Seen: Business Times of Singapore

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