SINGAPORE— Hotel Plaza Limited has acquired the joint venture and loan interests of the CapitaLand group, based here, in three Southeast Asia hotels in Myanmar, Vietnam and the People’s Republic of China. The portfolio of four- and five-star properties includes the 359-room Yangon Equatorial in Myanmar, the 322-room Mertius Westlake in Hanoi and the 328-room Sheraton Suzhou. The properties were acquired for approximately $82 million. The sell-off is part of CapitaLand’s strategy to divest non-core assets to reduce debt and improve return on equity. The offering corresponded with Hotel Plaza’s expansion plans in the region. Jones Lang LaSalle Hotels arranged the $82 million in financing for CapitaLand’s Asian hotel divestment program through its Australia-based corporate finance team, which structured the transaction. Michael Cowan, svp of Jones Lang LaSalle Hotels, said the challenge was “to structure a transaction which enabled CapitaLand to maximize the capital invested in emerging markets. We were able to financially engineer a solution which met Hotel Plaza’s investment guidelines. It also retained for CapitaLand the ability to participate in the improved performance of the hotels over the next five years. A win-win solution for all parties.” In Australia, Hotel Plaza Limited owns the Parramatta Parkroyal and Darling Harbour Parkroyal in Sydney, and the Sheraton Perth Hotel in Perth. It also recently sold the Landmark Parkrroyal in Potts Point to Mirvac Limited for residential conversion.
