US$85.5-million price tag for Sagicor’s newest hotel
THE Sagicor Real Estate X Fund Ltd announced that it acquired Hilton Rose Hall for nearly J$10 billion financed in part by debt, financials indicated.
The sale of the hotel was known since last year but not the purchase price.
“The purchase of the hotel by X Fund Properties Limited, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Sagicor Real Estate X Fund, was finalised in January 2015 for a purchase price of US$85.5 million (J$9.8 b),” stated the financials released on Wednesday to shareholders.
The hotel will eventually be rebranded as Jewel Rose Hall Curio by Hilton. The 489-room St James property, reportedly valued at some US$100 million, sits on 400 acres.
The purchase gave Sagicor its fourth hotel, giving it a total of some 1,230 rooms. Its other properties include Jewel Resorts in Mammee Bay, Runaway Bay, and Paradise Cove, all in St Ann.
The Curio tagline refers to independent hotels that enjoy the same benefits offered to Hilton guests — including access to Hilton ‘HHonours’, one of the world’s leading hotel loyalty programmes. The inclusion to the Curio line would therefore appeal to business travellers who choose hotels based on stacking up points.
In February, X Fund Properties Limited entered into a private placement to borrow US$46.75 million under a fixed-rate mortgage note aimed at assisting in “financing the purchase of the Hilton Rose Hall Resort and Spa”.
The notes were issued in two US-dollar tranches A and B with tenures of 10 years with a coupon at 6.0 per cent per annum payable quarterly, with the option for early encashment by investors at certain anniversaries.
Tranche C was a Jamaican- dollar issue with a tenure of 40 years and a coupon of 8.0 per cent per annum payable semi-annually for the first two years, then increasing to 11.50 per cent between years three to 40.
The X Fund made $921.5 million profit for its December year-end compared to $942.1 million in the previous period.
Sagicor X Fund’s directorship includes Rohan Miller as its president and chief executive and Richard Byles as its chairman.
