Japanese to raise hotel shareholding

Press, 18 January 1986, Page 9

Japanese to raise hotel shareholding

If the new Parkroyal Hotel planned for Victoria Square goes ahead it will be with an increased Japanese shareholding. Shareholding changes during the negotiations on finance for the hotel would mean Daikyo Kanco, a Japanese hotel company, taking a 65 per cent share in the $6O million project. Previous shareholding agreements would have given them 51 per cent, Southern Pacific Hotel Corporation 29 per cent, Rothmans Industries 10 per cent and Aetna, the Australian and New Zealand insurance firm, 10 per cent. Southern Pacific’s chief general manager, Mr Tony

Young, is still confident the corporation will meet its end-of-February deadline for its exclusive option on the site.

He said from Sydney yesterday that the Japanese investors in the project were in the city to discuss finance.

Daikyo Kanco will include other Japanese investors within its share.

Mr Young said all parties knew the February deadline. Southern Pacific hoped to have all the necessary documents signed by midFebruary.

Southern Pacific still had to meet some Japanese requirements, he said. Under the agreement, the

Southern Pacific and Rothmans shares will be combined — to hold 25 per cent. Rothmans is Southern Pacific’s partner in its Travelodge chain. Mr Young said he believed the agreement would be settled on time. Significant progress in the negotiations had been made. If the corporation misses the February deadline, it would have to pay a $200,000 performance bond to the Christchurch City Council, which owns the site.

Mr Young said that if, and when, the finance for the project was settled, the corporation then had to get a successful building tender.