March 28 –DLF Ltd, India’s biggest developer, will spend $5 billion in the next seven years to build about 125 hotels in the world’s fastest-growing tourist destination.
In Delhi Rajiv Singh vice chairman of DLF Ltd. said in an interview that DLF plans to build 25,000 rooms including 4,000 in the first three years.
Spending and investment on travel and tourism will rise 9.4 percent annually in the next decade, according to the World Travel and Tourism Council of India, Asia’s third-largest economy, needs 100,000 rooms and 10,000 to 15,000 are being developed each year, U.K.-based Hogg Robinson Group Plc said last month.
“There is tremendous opportunity because there is a very large shortage today,” Singh said.
DLF has a joint venture with Hilton Hotels Corp., the second-largest U.S. lodging company, to develop 75 properties. DLF purchased Aman Resorts Group in November, giving it control of more than 22 properties in 12 countries. Aman Resorts will open a hotel in New Delhi this year.
The number of five-star luxury rooms will increase to 58,000 in India’s 12 biggest cities in five years from 27,500, Crisil Ltd.’s research division estimates. The average occupancy will drop to 64 percent from 75 percent, it said.
Room tariffs at luxury hotels will rise to 11,700 rupees ($300) a night by the year ending March 31, 2012, from 3,960 rupees in the year ended March 31, 2003, Crisil said.
Building hotels also raises the value of real-estate developments.
“It seeks to enhance the value of our other asset classes,” Singh said.”
“We find that a hotel in an office park or luxury housing around it actually makes that product work better.”