Singapore Buyer Shells Out Bt1.4bn In Evason Phuket Buyout

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Singapore buyer shells out B1.4bn in Evason Phuket buyout

Phuket Gazette

The sun sets on the Evason Phuket resort, which originally opened decades ago as the Phuket Island Resort – at the time, the only resort on the island. Photo: Evason Phuket file

The sale included the mostly vacant plot of 75 rai occupied by the Evason Phuket. Photo: Evason Phuket file

PHUKET: -- A subsidiary of Singapore firm LC Development has acquired the former Evason Phuket and Bon Island Resort for a total consideration of 1.4 billion baht, reports Phuket Gazette Property columnist Bill Barnett.

The deal was struck on April 21, with Jones Lang LaSalle Hotels acting as broker to the transaction, Mr Barnett said on his Property Insider website.

The deal sees LC Development, with its wholly owned subsidiary LC Hotels Pte Ltd, transact all units in the Phuket Island Property Fund and The Evason Phuket Limited.

JTM (Thailand), a Thailand affiliate of the group, has been used as an operating entity.

LC Development has a significant stake in the Holiday Inn Resort Phuket.

The group also developed and invested in the Crowne Plaza Changi Airport in Singapore, together with institutional investor LaSalle Investment Management. The Crowne Plaza Changi was sold for S$299.5 million early last year.

The group also owns the Crowne Plaza London Kensington in London and the Holiday Inn City Centre Guangzhou.

“It’s not clear yet what the new ownership will do with the site, but one key element in the purchase of the resort is the large 75 rai site, with a considerable amount of vacant land.

“While no announcement has been made, industry speculation based on a close relationship between the developer and hotel operator IHG would point to the later ultimately being a potential brand partner,” Mr Barnett said.

“Another Singapore group co-owns a large site adjacent to the site, which had been pegged for a luxury Four Seasons resort. HPL, along with [global developing firm] Lehmans, had intended to promote the property, but post-financial crises and the latter group's collapse [Lehmans] has put the project on the back burner.

“Long term, it’s believed the prime oceanfront site will be built into an upscale resort. This and the Evason redevelopment will be considerable game changers for the Rawai hospitality sector,” Mr Barnett added.

The buyout of the Evason Phuket follows the high-profile shutdown of the resort late last month when hundreds of employees were summarily dismissed and retrenched through redundancy packages.

The news also follows Jones Lang LaSalle Hotels' recent brokering of the sale of the Movenpick Resort Karon Beach by Kingdom Hotel Investments to Malaysia’s TA Global Bhd for US$90.2 million (about 2.87 bn baht).

Source: http://www.phuketgaz...ticle16287.html

-- Phuket Gazette 2012-06-28

[Jimi007]

They must be pleased with the Singapore blog calling Phuket the capital of crime in Asia. And I thought only thais could own land in Thailand... I guess they found a way around that with their 1.4 billion Baht investment...

[clinique]

These deals have been in the works for a couple of years or more..The Singapore company likely fronts the real investors who are European based and reportedly buying up other resorts [or interests in other resorts] in other locations in Thailand..

Just because the names of the entitys are different doesnt mean they are not the same investor...

[12DrinkMore]

Bloody foreigners buying up land in Thailand.

How does that work?

[belg]

and i tought foreigners could not buy land? so how they play the game? i would one day like to own my own land and 100% of my own company ...

[Narratio]

Just sitting wondering about two other reacent stories.

Could the 2million baht police officer and the 3 million baht corrections officer be part of this 1.4 billion baht story? The corrections officer had got his via a "land deal" and it wasn't stated who gave the police officer his cheque.

Ahhh, I love adding to a good conspiracy theory.

[CantSpell]

Where did you guys see "Land"....

News says it buy the Evason Phuket, the land itself could well be under the name of a different company.

[Jimi007]

Where did you guys see "Land"....

News says it buy the Evason Phuket, the land itself could well be under the name of a different company.

It also says in the caption of the second photo: "The sale included the mostly vacant plot of 75 rai occupied by the Evason Phuket."

Also, it is the oldest resort on the island and closed for business, did you think they were just buying old dilapidated building for that kind of money?

[LivinginKata]

and i tought foreigners could not buy land? so how they play the game? i would one day like to own my own land and 100% of my own company ...

Get real. There all sorts of legal schemes for big investors in Thailand. By big I mean multi million dollars (as in hundreds of millions).

[Arkady]

I hope the Thai major shareholders of the land owning entity really put in their own money and have voting rights commensurate with their shareholdings. Somehow I doubt it but I am sure the Land Department officers got a nice tip!

Edited June 29, 2012 by Arkady

[Thaddeus]

I hope the Thai major shareholders of the land owning entity really put in their own money and have voting rights commensurate with their shareholdings. Somehow I doubt it but I am sure the Land Department officers got a nice tip!

Report them and get 20%

http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/566181-new-draconian-property-law-to-deport-foreigners-who-owns-land-illegally/