Mauritius-based gaming firm Pallagames and UK-based IT firm Trilogix along with Small Industries Development Bank of India (SIDBI) are close to picking up around 25% stake in Mennen Aviation and Hospitality (MAHL), a Mumbai-based, real estate, gaming and aviation services firm.
“We have already finalised an equity deal with Sidbi while negotiations are on with Pallagames and Trilogix. MAHL has plans to raise around Rs 150 crore through a mix of debt and equity for our expansion plans. We have plans to offload around 25% equity to raise part of the required funds,” MAHL managing director Dinesh Menon said.
MAHL is currently developing around 100 acres of land in Mumbai, Goa and Karnataka. The firm is also setting up around 15 service apartments in these regions by 2012. The first project is coming up at Goa, which will be operational by the end of the year.
The company has also identified centres like Kochi, Karwar, Gurgaon, Pune, Bangalore, Chennai and Hyderabad for setting up service apartments. MAHL is also setting up gaming centres along with its service centres. The firm has plans to set up an aviation training centre in Goa.
“If one is looking for a cost-effective alternative to hotels, nothing can beat service apartments that offer almost the same facilities but are about 25-30% cheaper,” Mr Menon said.
With the Indian economy having grown substantially in the past few years, the number of tourists — leisure and business — has increased manifold.
Real estate developers in cities like Singapore, London and Tokyo have all turned towards service apartments and have benefited in a big way. MAHL will target the domestic and international clientele seeking three-star and four-star facilities.
Source: Economic Times