Indian Hotels makes bid to buy out Orient Express Hotels

Tata group firm Indian Hotels Company, on Thursday, said it would make an offer to acquire U.S.-based Orient Express Hotels, which owns a chain of luxury hotels in U.S. and Europe.

Indian Hotels, which operates the iconic Taj properties , said it had acquired 6.9 per cent stake in Orient Express during 2007 and 2009, and now will make an offer to buy the remaining 93.1 per cent. The board has ‘in principle’, subject to necessary approvals, authorised the company to make an offer to the board of Orient Express Hotels seeking its consent for the company acquiring the balance outstanding 93.1 per cent Class A common shares of Orient Express Hotels, that is, 100 per cent.”

“The company proposes to finance the acquisition of such shares and related transaction costs through a combination of debt and equity,” the company said in a filing to the BSE adding that the funds required to consummate the transaction are in place.

Indian Hotels said that a combination of itself and Orient Express Hotels was a ‘strategically compelling’ opportunity for both companies and their respective shareholders.

“Appropriate disclosure of the offer, as afore referred, is being concurrently filed with the Securities Exchange Commission, U.S.,” it said.

The company said it had an agreement with Montezemolo & Partners, an Italian company directly owned by the Montezemolo family, who is the Manager of Charme II Fund, which will be a minority shareholder in the special purpose vehicle set up for the transaction.