Mfar Hotels to invest $100 mn in Maldives

Mfar Hotels & Resorts, hospitality arm of Kerala NRI tycoon P Mohamed Ali's Mfar Group, is to invest around $100 million to set up a resort in Maldives.

The company is planning to raise money from private equity entities. It also plans a resort in Sri Lanka.

P J Mammen, chief operating officer of Mfar Hotels & Resorts, said they were planning a viable circuit connecting Maldives, Sri Lanka, Chennai and Kochi.

Both countries are well connected from Chennai and Kochi.

Presently, he manages the operation of three functional hotels — Le Meridien Kochi, The Westin Chennai and Hormuz Grand Muscat — with a combined room strength of 671 and staff of 900.

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A 130-villa resort in Maldives is in the design stage, with the potential of adding two more resorts at a later stage.

The company expects to commence work for the project from the third quarter of 2016.

The Lanka project is is in the design stage, he said.

In India, the company is looking at Bengaluru and Hyderabad for expansion. He did not give any timeframe.

The Mfar group has interests in realty, hospitality, manufacturing and infrastructure projects, beside a container freight station.

The $1-billion group was founded by Mohamed Ali, a Keralite who migrated to Dubai.