Tag: Barceló Group

Valencian Gov’t Will Pocket €24M From Sale of Land Next to Terra Mítica

17 January 2018 – Eje Prime

Provided there are no last minute surprises, the Valencian Government will make some money from the sale of the land it owns next to Terra Mítica. Specifically, the public body will pocket €24 million from the sale of eight of the nine lots that it put up for auction in September. The only plot that has not received offers has been reserved for conferences.

The vast majority of the companies interested in the lots up for sale are the same ones that have been granted the concessions for the land in recent years, with the exception of Terra Natura, the zoo owned by Grupo Corporativo Fuertes, which has not participated in the bid, according to Expansión.

The owners of the two largest complexes close to the Valencian theme park, Villaitana and Asia Gardens, have bid for the plots that they used to manage by submitting offers just above the auction starting prices. In the first case, HI Partners, the hotel company that was recently purchased by the US fund Blackstone, has made two offers: one through the current concessionaire of the land, Xeresa Gold, and another in the name of HI Partners itself, which owns 80% of Xeresa.

Meanwhile, the luxury Asia Gardens resort, managed by the Barceló group, has sparked great interest. For this complex, which occupies three of the plots up for auction, the highest offer has been presented by an unknown player in the area. Not in vain, the company Mítica Finestrat Investment, which is headquartered in Madrid, could end up being the surprise winner, given that, according to Expansión, its bid was slightly higher than that made by the Royal Mediterránea company, run by Pedro Romero and in which Barceló holds a 17% stake.

Nevertheless, Romero holds a preferential purchase right over the plots and so, even if he does not end up winning the auction, he will have 30 days to improve on the highest offer, which will amount to around €11 million.

For the rest of the plots, the Terra Natura area will, a priori, remain in the hands of Camping La Media Legua, owned by the Puchades family. Moreover, the Puchades family will fight it out, together with Dynastic Explotations, owned by another illustrious businessman from the region, Vicente Sempere Monerris, for the new sports tourism area.

Original story: Eje Prime

Translation: Carmel Drake

Hispania Buys Hotel Selomar In Benidorm For €16M

20 June 2017 – MB Noticias

Yesterday, Hispania announced the purchase of Hotel Selomar in Benidorm. It is one of the city’s iconic complexes but is in a very bad state after more than 10 years of disrepair and the spectacular fire that almost destroyed it. With 245 rooms in total and located on the Levante beach front, the hotel has been sold for approximately €16 million. Following the acquisition, Hispania has become the largest hotel owner in Spain. It now owns 11,021 rooms in 38 hotels, according to a statement issued by the company.

As part of the strategy to acquire the hotel, Hispania will invest between €17 million and €19 million on its complete renovation. The total investment, including the repositioning, amounts to between €33 million and €35 million. The Barceló Group will be the hotel operator through a lease contract with a fixed and variable component, under the framework agreement that it holds with Hispania.

Benidorm is one of the most established tourist destinations in Spain and has some of the best beaches in the whole Mediterranean. According to Hispania, Benidorm is one of the few year-round destinations in mainland Spain, which along with its significant international tourism component, makes it one of the most attractive destinations for investment in Spain.

“With our entry into the market in Benidorm, Hispania is accessing a strategic market in Spain, given its stable occupancy rate during the course of the year and its high degree of exposure to European tourists. This operation shows, once again, Hispania’s capacity to generate value from individual operations at the same time as we increase our presence in the Mediterranean”, said Concha Osácar, CEO of Hispania.

Original story: MB Noticias

Translation: Carmel Drake

Hispania Buys Hotel Paradise Portinatx In Ibiza For €11M

19 July 2016 – Expansión

The Socimi Hispania Activos Inmobiliarios has acquired 100% of the shares in the company Later Deruser, owner of the Hotel Paradise Portinatx in Ibiza (Balearic Islands), for €11 million, which will now be operated by Barceló.

Hispania has performed the operation through its subsidiary Bay Hotels & Leisure, according to a statement filed with Spain’s National Securities and Markets Commission (CNMV).

Hotel Paradise Portinatx is a three-star facility, with 134 rooms.

As part of its investment strategy, Hispania will undertake a comprehensive refurbishment of the property, spending approximately €8 million, to increase it to an “adult only” 4-star hotel.

The Barceló Group will operate the hotel through a lease contract (with fixed and variable elements) under a framework agreement that covers all of the hotels operated by the group.

The asset is located on Playa de Portinatx, right on the beach. The town of Portinatx, in the north of the island, is seeing a significant upgrade of its hotel offerings.

According to available data about occupancy rates and average revenues per room, Ibiza has established itself as one of the primary destinations in the Mediterranean.

Hispania considers that there are still attractive investment opportunities in the hotel sector, as it gains presence in vacation destinations with growth potential, as well as in privileged locations.

According to the CEO of Hispania, Concha Osácar, this operation shows, once again, that the Balearic Islands – and Ibiza in particular, which is the best performing island in the region – are a key market for Hispania.

Currently, Hispania owns four hotels on the island: the recently repositioned Hotel Barceló Pueblo Ibiza, and three hotels recently purchased in Cala de San Miguel, which will be repositioned in 2017.

Original story: Expansión

Translation: Carmel Drake

Hispania Prepares To Convert Itself Into A Socimi

22 February 2016 – Expansión

First full year of operation / The real estate company quadrupled its net profit in 2015, to €73.4 million and will bring forward its dividend payment to this year.

Hispania Activos Inmobiliarios, the real estate company owned by the billionaire George Soros, is preparing to convert itself into a Socimi, after closing 2015 with a net profit of €73.4 million, which represented a four-fold increase in its earnings compared with 2014.

The company, which has maintained its status as a public company until now, in order to benefit from maximum flexibility to invest and create its asset portfolio, announced on Thursday that it will propose its conversion into a Socimi at its next shareholders’ meeting. The real estate company, which was constituted in January 2014 and which has been listed on the stock exchange since March last year, current owns one subsidiary 100% – Hispania Real – which is already registered as a Socimi.

Dividends to be paid sooner than expected

The company, which is managed externally and exclusively by Azora, also communicated its intention to bring forward its dividend payment to 2016. The real estate company closed 2015 with a gross operating profit (EBITDA) of €10 million, compared with the negative balance of €2.5 million it recorded a year earlier.

Last year, it generated net rental income of €38 million, compared with €9 million in 2014. By division, hotel revenues amounted to €16.69 million, plus €4.29 million from hotels under management. Hispania’s hotel portfolio closed the year with 8,234 rooms across 27 hotels, plus two shopping centres.

Meanwhile, the revenues from the office segment amounted to €12.15 million. The company owns a total gross leasable area of 53,621 m2 spread across 25 assets.

In the housing segment, revenues amounted to €4.66 million. Hispania manages a residential portfolio that includes four assets, one in Barcelona (the Isla del Cielo homes) and the other three in the Community of Madrid (Sanchinarro, San Sebastián de los Reyes and Majadahonda). In total, the company’s residential asset portfolio contains 684 homes (200 in Barcelona and 484 in Madrid). The group explained that it purchased 33 assets with an acquisition value of €841 million last year, including the formalisation of the two phases of operation Bay with the Barceló Group, which has a total portfolio value of €458.6 million.

Moreover, since its debut on the stock exchange, the real estate company has invested in 58 assets, with a consolidated value of €1,425 million, according to a valuation performed by CBRE.

Original story: Expansión (by Rebeca Arroyo)

Translation: Carmel Drake

Barceló Buys Spain’s 5th Largest Tour Operator

11 January 2016 – Expansión

The travel division of the Barceló Group has acquired all of the shares in Spain’s fifth largest tour operator, Special Tours, which specialises in tours of Europe, the Middle East, the Far East, Africa and Oceania, as it continues progressing with its plans to internationalise and strengthen its position in Latin America.

The Mallorcan group, which did not disclose any of the financial details of the operation, will incorporate Special Tours’ entire workforce, comprising 300 employees. It will also maintain the company’s current operations, which are headquartered in the Ciudad de la Imagen in Madrid, as well as its management team, led by Carlos Jiménez (pictured above), who will continue to be the CEO of the company after the integration.

The Barceló Group has said that this operation, which is pending approval by the corresponding regulatory bodies, forms part of the company’s commitment to product specialisation and internationalisation and goes some way towards fulfilling its objective of becoming a major player in the Latin market.

In this sense, the Barceló Group said that Special Tours has been operating in every country in the Latin American market, where it plays a very important role, for more than 30 years.

Focus on Latin America

The Corporate Director General of the Barceló Group’s travel division, Alejandro Subías, said that the operation represents a “significant” boost to the firm’s strategic plan and allows it to continue its commitment to consolidating its position in Latin America.

“With the integration of the team led by Carlos Jiménez, we are continuing to grow, complementing and strengthening our current product portfolio, and to offer even more travel options and experiences to our clients, which is the real raison d’être of our group”, added the director.

Original story: Expansión

Translation: Carmel Drake