KHC sells 50% stake in Four Seasons Hotel

RIYADH: Kingdom Holding Company (KHC), chaired by Prince Alwaleed bin Talal, has announced the sale of its 50 percent stake in the Four Seasons Hotel des Bergues in Geneva. KHC said yesterday that it realized SR225 million in net cash proceeds. The sale of the Hotel des Bergues comes in line with KHC’s active management of hotel assets and focus on extracting value out of management company interests. The hotel remains under the management of Four Seasons in which KHC holds a 47.5 percent stake.

The Hotel des Bergues is Geneva’s first hotel located in the heart of the city. It was built over 170 years ago and has a lot of historical significance. It was the choice of stay for many world travelers and heads of state, and has been a monument on the Rhone since 1834. While the hotel maintains its heritage since its purchase in 2003, it has been revitalized to balance with today’s technological advancement, sophisticated service, and warm hospitality. The hotel was purchased by Prince Alwaleed through KHC for SR150 million.

KHC recently announced that Raffles would manage the Le Royal Monceau in Paris and also about the reopening of The Plaza, New York. In 2008, Kingdom Holding announced that Fairmont would manage the Fairmont Haitang Bay Resort, Sanya, China, scheduled to open in 2011.

In 2007, the company announced the sale of Legacy Hotels Real Estate Investment Trust (REIT) for a sale value SR5 billion with sale proceeds of SR740 million going to KHC, Swissotel Sydney in Australia for a sale value SR281 million, re-financing of the Four Seasons George V hotel in Paris with net cash proceeds valued at SR285 million going to KHC, the re-financing of the Hotel des Bergues, Geneva in the amount of SR375 million and announced the sale of the Four Seasons Hotel, London, for SR550 million.

Also, in 2008, KHC announced that it had completed the sale of the Monte Carlo Grand Hotel in Monaco with proceeds valued at SR150 million going to KHC, Raffles Grand D’ Angkor & Le Royal, Cambodia, for a sale value of SR131 million and the Swissotel Merchant Court, Singapore, for a sale value of SR573 million.