Despite net profit for the first six months of the year falling by 87 per cent, Panjam Investments Limited is continuing with current projects such as the Rok Hotel which is the company’s latest real estate project.

Since outbreak of the novel coronavirus, Panjam has repositioned itself to capitalise on its real estate portfolio which is up 17 per cent to $1.1 billion.

Some of the company’s real estate holdings include the Scotiabank Centre, Manor Park plazas, CIBC First Caribbean building and Panjam building, which have maintained stable occupancy over the period.

The former Oceana Hotel which was redeveloped and renamed the Rok Hotel had its opening pushed back to 2021 due to delays in obtaining certain materials and COVID-19 restrictions in Jamaica. However, Panjam had already secured funding for its real estate plans earlier in the year.

“Panjam is excited to partner on the regional debut of the tapestry collection by Hilton. The choice of the tapestry brand was strategic. It focuses on owners of unique, upscale hotels, allowing for the preservation of each property’s distinctive character.

“This was extremely important to us as we aim to not just maintain but enhance the cultural significance of downtown Kingston said senior vice-president Joanna Banks at the company’s recent annual general meeting.

The Rok Hotel will be a mixed-use property, with the top four floors for residential use, while the rest of the property will be used for the general operations of the Hilton- affiliated hotel.

There will be six penthouses and 36 apartments, which will allow residents to access other parts of the hotel’s amenities, such as the pool deck, fitness centre, restaurant, café and bar. The marketing of the units has already begun with Panjam compiling a list of interested buyers with sale of the units to begin later this year.

On the cusp of realising the novel coronavirus’s true effects on the global tourism industry, Panjam did not sign an agreement with an international hotel chain for the development of the five acres of land adjacent to the Freeport in Montego Bay. This has resulted in the company updating its master plan as hotel chains re-evaluate their long-term plans in the changing world.

“We are grateful that we did not make a hotel flag decision before the pandemic. We now have the opportunity to evaluate long-term tourism trends and projections in order to determine the appropriate mix of hotel, residential and retail space that will best the suit the new normal that Montego Bay will experience,” Banks said.

Panjam’s associated companies were all impacted differently because of COVID-19, with their tourism-exposed companies taking the largest hit while New Castle, Sagicor Group Jamaica and Itelbpo were affected by higher expenses and lower profits. However, the reopening of borders in the respective markets should drive some level of recovery for their various businesses which rely heavily on tourism. This is key as their Courtyard by Marriott Hotel remained open even with low occupancy.

Even with no clear end in sight to the novel coronavirus pandemic, Panjam has focused on preserving cash through cost-containment exercises and suspending their quarterly dividends, which was heavily impacted by the Bank of Jamaica’s dividend request for 2020 which restricted Sagicor’s dividend payment that totals $472.1 million for the company.

Panjam’s cash and securities totalled $13.6 billion, with a debt-to-equity ratio at 32 per cent at the end of June, which should allow them to weather the storm and keep their staff on board without any lay-offs.