Sets New Benchmarks in Ecological Design

SINGAPORE, 18 August 2009 – Frasers Hospitality Pte Ltd (Frasers) today signed a contract to manage its first Fraser Suites property in India’s capital, New Delhi, strategically located close to Central Delhi.

 The nine-storey, 90-unit Fraser Suites New Delhi is scheduled to open in October next year.

The eco-friendly, ultra-modern property sets new benchmarks in ecological design, with a superstructure based on the Vastu Energy Grid, aimed at optimising the use of solar energy for lighting, heating and electricity generation.

Situated in the Mayur Vihar area, it is part of a newly developed business hub comprising a mall, commercial offices and hotels with direct access to the Metro Station and is conveniently accessible from key locations around the city.

Amenities include a fully-equipped business centre, health club and spa, swimming pool with pool deck, outdoor whirlpool, a wellness bar, retail offerings, café and restaurant.

The signing today brings the total number of Frasers-managed units to 585 in separate developments scheduled to open in India over the next three years. It underscores Frasers’ objective to achieve a target of more than 700 individual units under management contract by 2011, elevating India to Frasers’ second largest market globally.  Only China is expected to out-pace India’s rapid pace of development.

“Despite the impact of the global financial crisis on the real estate sector, there is still a critical shortage of high-end serviced residences accommodation. In New Delhi, there is a current inventory of just over 11,000 rooms as against the demand for about 35,000 guest rooms for the Commonwealth Games in 2010,” said Mr. Choe Peng Sum, Chief Executive Officer of Frasers Hospitality.

“As our Gold-Standard residences gain in popularity worldwide we look forward to making a significant contribution to upscale accommodation needs in India, particularly given the increase in business travellers to key cities throughout the country,” he added.

All Frasers-branded properties provide five-star-type luxury combined with the space of an apartment. It comes with separate living and dining rooms and fully-equipped kitchen, complete with clothes washer and dryer. In addition, residents can enjoy a full range of facilities, including all-day dining, a business centre, swimming pool and fitness club.

Fraser Suites New Delhi is being developed by IFCI Infrastructure Development Limited (IIDL) as an institutional endeavour. IIDL is a subsidiary of the first Development Financial Institute of the country that is IFCL, (formerly Industrial Finance Corporation of India) which has spearheaded commercial and industrial development throughout India.

Mr. Atul Kumar Rai, CEO and Managing Director of IFCI Ltd and Chairman of IIDL said, “IIDL is glad to have Frasers onboard to set a new benchmark in serviced living for business travellers. With this quality development and Frasers’ expertise, guests can expect excellent accommodation integrated with sustainable living and state-of-the-art connectivity. Fraser Suites New Delhi would offer a combination of state of art comforts with most modern architecture design and a touch of Indian heritage features design in the property at Mayur Vihar. ”

He added, “ IIDL will soon start development of ‘serviced apartments/hotel’ projects at other locations to bridge the gap in demand and supply of good guest accommodations.”

Frasers, the hospitality arm of Frasers Centrepoint Limited, which is a wholly-owned subsidiary of public-listed Fraser and Neave, Limited, marked its debut in the India market with the announcement of three properties in Bangalore in November last year. Another two properties in New Delhi and Chennai are also slated to open by 2012.

With the signing today of Fraser Suites New Delhi management contract, Frasers has expanded its global footprint across Europe, North Asia, Southeast Asia, Middle East and Australia to include more than 4,800 individual apartments in its current portfolio. 

And, with another 4000 apartments already on the drawing board, the company is on course to manage close to 10,000 units by the end of 2010.  

The Fraser Suites New Delhi announcement follows hot-on-the-heels of the official opening of Fraser Suites Hanoi on July 29 and the launch of the company’s second brand – Modena in Tianjin, China -- on July 16.

Worldwide this year, five properties have opened with the Frasers marque – in the United Kingdom, Thailand, China, Bahrain and Singapore.