German global real estate investment group Deka Immobilien is believed to be poised to acquire the Gibson Hotel in Dublin's docklands.
The four-star hotel was put up for sale recently with a price tag of €87 million. It is being sold by Savills estate agents on behalf of receivers Paul McCann and Stephen Tennant of Grant Thornton.
Designed by Scott Tallon Walker, the Gibson opened in 2010 and has 252 rooms including 20 suites, a restaurant, bar and extensive conference facilities. It was previously part of the Choice Hotels group.
It is currently let to a subsidiary of the listed Dalata hotel group which acquired its interest in the property last year. According to the sales brochure for the Gibson, the expected rent for 2017 is €4.65. This is made up of the base rent of €2.93 million per annum, plus the variable rent, linked to turnover, forecast to be €1.72 million this year. There is a lease term of 17.8 years
Deka already owns the former Burlington Hotel in Dublin which is operated by Dalata under the Clayton brand on a 25-year contract. The transaction consideration for Dalata from acquiring its operating interest in the Burlington was €2.5 million.
Deka acquired the Burlington in 2016 after it was put up for sale by US investment giant Blackstone for €180 million.
In August, Deka agreed a sale and leaseback deal with Dalata on the Hotel La Tour in Birmingham for £30 million (€33 million).
Dalata will operate the hotel on a new lease for a 35 years. The agreed initial rent for the property was £1.6 million a year, subject to five-yearly reviews, index-linked to the retail price index.
No comment was available from Deka, Dalata, Savills or Grant Thornton. A spokeswoman for Deka said: “We don’t comment on market rumours.”
