Mahindra Holidays & Resorts has entered into an agreement with the Andhra Pradesh government for investing Rs 500 crore in the state and is in talks with the governments in Rajasthan, Gujarat, Tamil Nadu and Jammu & Kashmir for investment opportunities, the vacation timeshare company’s top executive said.
“We are in active discussions with state governments to see if we can get land parcels or existing resorts. We could also take over and refurbish existing resorts,” managing director and chief executive Kavinder Singh told ET in an interview. “If we have to go from 5,000 to 10,000 keys by 2030, our capex is going to be in the order of Rs 4,000-5,000 crore. We are really strong on our cash position.”
The Mahindra Group company has signed memorandums of understanding (MoUs) with Tamil Nadu and Uttarakhand in the past one year for investments worth Rs 1,800 crore to build new resorts.
“This plan requires us to go all out. It could be acquisitions, greenfield opportunities, and even expansion of existing resorts like our resort Kandaghat (in Himachal Pradesh). We are also looking at larger resorts now in the range of 150-200 rooms,” Singh said.
Leisure branded accommodation is highly underserved in India, he said.
“Smaller places like Bali, Dubai and Phuket beat us hollow. So, we are very confident in our assessment that this is the time to invest, build properties and build a great future for the company,” he said.
“Our occupancies will close at an all-time high this quarter at around 87-88%. We have never seen this momentum in people wanting to holiday despite the fact that we are adding rooms. It’s a great situation to be in, as whatever we are building is getting absorbed,” he added.
The company is also looking at expanding its portfolio in some short-haul neighbouring markets considering the demand from India and is evaluating if it could have its own properties there.
“We are constantly looking for new opportunities in Thailand, Singapore and Vietnam,” said Singh.
In September last year, Mahindra Holidays & Resorts signed an MoU with the government in Uttarakhand to invest Rs 1,000 crore and build four to five resorts over the next few years. In January this year, the company said it signed an MoU with Tamil Nadu through which it would invest Rs 800 crore to build three new resorts over five to six years.
Source: Economic Times