Ghion on Offer for Lesser Price in Second Round

Agency changed price after private consultancy firm assessed assets, value.

Addis Ababa, Ethiopia - The Privatisation and Public Enterprises Supervising Agency (PPESA) will lower the indicative price of Ghion Hotel Addis Abeba, when it re tenders it for full private ownership in the coming three weeks, after taking the recommendation of outside consultants, SAB management and Development Consultancy Fortune learnt.

Officials from the Agency will only confirm that the indicative price is lower than before, but have declined to state the exact amount. However a source who used to work closely on the matter had stated that it may be between 100 million and 130 million dollars.

The indicative price for the hotel had been set at 150 million dollars,when it was put on the auction bloc for full private ownership for the first time last July.

Although around 12 local and international companies,including hotel owners and those involved in the import export business had bought the bid document, no one had submitted tenders for the hotel in time for the bid closing date.

“The time was too short to secure the appropriate financing from foreign banks and submit a complete bid,” an advisor to a foreign company interested in buying the Hotel had told Fortune then.

The expert who also has long years of experience in the Ethiopian hotel business also added that the indicative price is fair if enough time is given to submit bids, since the hotel has ample open space.

Addis Abeba’s Ghion, one of the last two remaining of the 11 hotel chains under the Ghion HotelsEnterprise, was built in 1951 and sprawls over 12 ha of land.