Egypt's Orascom Development said on Thursday that the completion of selling its stake in two hotels and a land plot in Makadi destination at higher cash proceeds of 408 million pounds ($22.8 million). The company said in a filling to the Egyptian Exchange (EGX) that it concluded the sale of Royal Azur and Club Azur Hotels as well as a land plot in the Makadi destination on the Red Sea. "The sale was concluded at a higher enterprise value of 856 million pounds ($47.8 million) than 823 million pounds that was previously announced. This will result in total cash proceeds of 408 million pounds ($ 22.8 million) from 387.1 million pounds ($21.6 million) that was previously announced," Orascom said. The statement added that the sale will also result in the deconsolidation of 260.1 million pounds of debt held on Royal for Touristic and Development Company, the former owner of the hotels. "We are also in the course of finalizing the documents for the completion of the sale of the Makadi Gardens Hotel which was sold for LE 114.7 million ($ 6.4 million)," the statement read. "The conclusion of the sale is a solid testament to our continuous delivery of our strategy. Since the beginning of year, the company has made significant strides to streamline and reshape its investments through monetizing its non-core assets," Chief Executive Officer Khaled Bichara said. "We will continue to wisely invest our capital to drive growth and prioritize our time and resources to build a stronger and sustainable organisation," he added. The company noted that the proceeds of the sale of the hotels and the land spot, in addition to those of the Tamweel Group together with parts of the excess cash flow from operations, will all be geared towards reducing the debt balance. Previously, Orascom Development announced that its hotel subsidiary Orascom Hotels Management (OHM) signed an agreement with Thomas Cook with total investments of 200 million حخعىيس. In December, Orascom announced signing the final agreement with New Urban Communities Authorities (NUCA) to co-develop a 1,000 feddan integrated community project in Sixth of October City, West Cairo, based on a revenue sharing model. Orascom operates within the consumer services sector focusing on hotels, resorts and cruise lines with 52 subsidiaries operating across Northern Africa, Middle East, and southern Europe. Source: Egypt Today
