Thai hotel group, Minor Hotel Group, has announced a partnership deal with South African hotel and casino corporation, Sun International. The Thailand-based company is expanding its hotel and casino operations throughout Africa.
Minor Hotel Group will own and operate eight properties in five countries around Africa, with seven of the eight properties to be rebranded to its AVANI brand, while the eighth will be marketed through its Anantara distribution channels.
Sun International to Manage Casino Properties
Through the Minor Hotel Group and Sun International partnership the Thai company will be responsible for the management of the hotel properties, while Sun International will operate the casinos.
There are eight properties in five countries that are included in the Sun international partnership deal. These include The Gabarone Sun in Botswana, The Lesotho Sun and Maseru Sun in Lesotho, The Kalahari Sands in Namibia, The Royal Swazi and Ezulwini in Swaziland and The Royal Livingstone Hotel and Zambezi Sun in Zambia.
The company has spent $63.9 million on a 50 percent stake on the two properties in Zambia and 37.5 to 80 percent stakes in the remaining six properties.
The Royal Livingstone will not be rebranded, but will be marketed through the distribution channels of their Anantara brand, while the other seven properties will be rebranded under their AVANI brand. Currently, there are five AVANI properties in three countries, with three more to be added by year's end, on top of the seven African properties.
Minor Hotel Group Continues Expansions
The Minor Hotel Group already owns stakes in several properties in countries around Africa, including eight luxury safari resorts in Kenya and Tanzania and the Elewana Collection of five hotels in Mozambique.
Through this latest partnership, the Thai-based group will operate 118 properties across 19 countries.
"Minor Hotel Group is strategically expanding its hospitality business into many regions and Africa is a key focus where we have seen substantial growth potential," announced Dilip Rajakarier, Chief Executive Officer at Minor. "Starting with these existing African properties, it is the intention of this new partnership to explore together other hotel and gaming opportunities that may arise in Africa and Asia, where MHG would manage the hotel component and Sun International would manage the casino component."
The deal allows Minor Hotel Group to invest in properties and commit further capital expenditure, fitting with its stated aim to expand its global footprint and expand its presence in Africa.
