HICAP Deal of the Year Award Finalists

The finalists for the Reggie Shiu Development of the Year and Single Asset Transaction of the Year Awards, to be presented at the 24th annual Hotel Investment Conference Asia Pacific (HICAP), scheduled for 16-18 October 2013, at the InterContinental Hong Kong, have been unveiled.

Finalists for the Reggie Shiu Development of the Year Award are:

EAST, Beijing - Beijing, China - This contemporary styled, 396-room “business hotel with a life”, was designed to provide the facilities, service and environment to deftly balance business with pleasure and serve as the focal point for the RMB 4 Billion INDIGO mixed-use (office + retail) project in East Beijing’s quickly expanding business district. The sensitive use of natural materials, texture changes and lighting creates a calming feel to the hotel experience, while state-of-the-art technology facilitates business. For unwinding, three customized “neighborhood” F&B venues are offered, along with an array of leisure/recreational facilities.

Owner: Swire Properties/Sino-Ocean Land; Operator: Swire Hotels; Architect: Benoy Associates LLC; Interiors: Benoy Associates LLC/Neri & Hu Design Research Office (F&B).

Parkroyal on Pickering - Singapore - This 363-room "Hotel in a Garden" is a refreshing addition to the Singapore CBD skyline, featuring 15,000 sqm of lush 4-storey sky gardens, mixing reflective pools, waterfalls, planters and vertical greenery. This unique urban oasis incorporates an array of sustainable design features, including savvy use of solar power, rain harvesting and other conservation and recycling systems to manage utilities consumption. Adding in clever, quirky and efficient design of rooms and public areas, the hotel has performed strongly since opening as a striking and distinguished product in a crowded and competitive market.

Owner: Pan Pacific Hotels Group; Operator: Pan Pacific Hotels Group; Architect: Woha Architects; Interiors: Woha Architects.

Sheraton Macau Hotel - Cotai Central, Macau - Boasting 3,896 rooms, this latest addition to Macau’s Cotai Strip takes “economies of scale” to a whole new level. Add nearly 20,000 sqm of meeting/event space and you have the makings of a mini-city and all the management challenges and opportunities that come with it! As impressive as its sheer size may be, its achieving 100% occupancy in its first weekend of operation is simply difficult to fathom - clearly a boon to accommodating pent-up demand and helping fill owner Las Vegas Sands’ gaming coffers.

Owner: Las Vegas Sands; Operator: Starwood Hotels and Resorts; Architect: AEDAS; Interiors: KNA Design.

Finalists for the Single Asset Transaction of the Year Award are:

Four Seasons Sydney - Sydney, Australia - In August 2013, the Korean funds manager, Mirae Asset Global Investments made its first move into the Australian hotel market with the purchase of the irreplaceable Four Seasons Hotel Sydney at a record Australian price of A$340 million or A$640,000 per key. The seller, Eureka Funds Management, succeeded in working with Four Seasons to double operating profits since acquiring the asset in 2009 and crystalizing strong returns on their earlier purchase.

Laguna Beach Resort (now Outrigger Laguna Phuket) - Phuket, Thailand - In the spring of this year – Outrigger Enterprises acquired the fully renovated Laguna Beach Resort as the anchor for their growing regional platform. The 254-room resort was acquired from a subsidiary of RECAP II Fund for US$118 million or US$464,000 per key and now operates as the Outrigger Laguna Phuket Resort. The seller’s acquisition of this property was co-awarded at last year’s HICAP with a deal of the year – only to turn-around and clean up difficult and protracted issues of pre-existing litigation, land encroachment and beach squatters followed by a massive renovation, repositioning, and sale to a strategic buyer.

Park Hotel Clarke Quay - Singapore - In June 2013, Ascendas Hospitality Trust successfully acquired the leasehold Park Hotel Clarke Quay for S$300 million or about S$892,000 per key from the developer and operator, Park Hotel Group. The transaction is significant because of the relatively quick value created by the acquisition of the land rights, development, branding and operation of the hotel by the seller and the structure of the transaction as a sale-leaseback. The sale-leaseback to the Park Hotel Group was accretive to the buyer as the fixed component of the lease served to reduce the overall volatility of portfolio income while achieving the objective of increasing exposure to the Singapore market.

The Sustainable Hotel Awards will also be presented at HICAP, recognizing hotels in the Asia Pacific region demonstrating exemplary sustainable best practices.

HICAP is hosted by BHN, Horwath HTL, and Stiles Capital Events.