Viceroy Hotels gets bankers nod to sell Chennai division

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Hyderabad-based Viceroy Hotels, owner of the J W Marriott property here, on Wednesday informed the BSE exchange it had concluded a deal to sell its Chennai assets, including the hotel and residential projects, to Ceebros Hotels. The sale is estimated to be worth Rs 480 crore.

The company had started developing a five-star hotel in the city under the J W Marriott brand.

Earlier this year, Viceroy Hotels said its board had approved a proposal to sell the Chennai project division to Ceebros for a total consideration of Rs 480 crore. In June, the company’s shareholders approved the sale proposal.

The 2012-13 annual report said the sale would cut its debt by Rs 560 crore. The company was had sought no-objection certificates from State Bank of India, State Bank of Mysore, State Bank of Bikaner & Jaipur, Indian Overseas Bank, Allahabad Bank and UCO Bank.

The loans pertaining to the Chennai hotel could not be repaid because the project was still being built while the repayment period began according to the original schedule. After the sale, all the associated loans would be repaid, the company has said. Consequently, Viceroy would not be defaulting on any loans, it added.