Mahindra Holidays lines up projects worth Rs 600 cr

Properties to come up in Himachal Pradesh, Goa and Kerala

Mahindra Holidays & Resorts India (MHRIL), hospitality arm of the Mahindra Group, will build properties in Shimla, Goa and Kerala. These will be part of the company's plan to add 700 units over the next few years.

The total investment for these properties would be Rs 550-600 crore, said S Krishnan, chief financial officer and executive director.

Last year, the company added 409 units, taking the total inventory to 2,816, a 17 per cent rise.

The three projects at Naldehra in Shimla, Assonora in Goa, and at Ashtamudi in Kerala are in different stages of planning and development.

Expansion of the existing properties at Kandaghat near Shimla and a new project at Dharamsala in Himachal Pradesh are also being considered.

The company will consider acquisitions in India, as well as abroad. It is also present in international destinations such as Bangkok, Innsbruck (Austria), Kuala Lumpur and Dubai.

The board of MHRIL had recently given consent to increase the company’s stake in Holiday Club Resorts, Oy, Finland to 88 per cent. The deal is likely to be completed over the next three months, subject to regulatory approvals. On completion, the MHRIL-Holiday Club Resorts will become the largest vacation ownership company in the world, outside the US.

MHRIL has a land bank at nine locations in six states in India, which the company is planning to expand further. “Some of our existing resorts have additional land, which can be utilised for expansion. This will provide the flexibility to add room inventory at an ongoing basis,” said the company.

The company is building inventory and adding new destinations as a key strategic objective.

The firm’s inventory strategy is to have resorts that are either owned or under a long lease. The new project at Kanha in Madhya Pradesh and expansion at Virajpet, Coorg, in Karnataka have contributed 154 units to the inventory.

The acquisition of a premium resort at Manali in Himachal Pradesh contributed another 60 units.

The construction of additional rooms in Munnar, Kerala was completed during the year and the same would be made available to members during the first quarter of 2015-16, said the company.
IN THE PIPELINE

•  These projects will be part of the company's plan to add 700 units over the next few years
• Total investment for these would be Rs 550-600 crore
• Projects in Shimla, Goa and Kerala in different stages of planning and development