InterContinental Hotels Group (IHG) today said it plans to operate 45 new hotels in India by 2015, taking its total capacity in the country to over 10,000 rooms.
As part of the expansion plans, the group today launched its 'Holiday Inn Express' brand, which will operate in the mid-segment in India. It has also signed a deal with realty firm Amrapali Group to manage six hotels under the new brand.
The Indian realty partner is investing Rs 1,000 crore to develop the new properties.
IHG currently operates 12 hotels under the InterContinental, Crowne Plaza and Holiday Inn brands, with a total room capacity of about 3,000 in India.
"We are introducing the 'Holiday Inn Express' brand in India in association with Amrapali Group because there is huge opportunity in the limited service category," IHG Asia- Australia Managing Director Jan Smits told reporters here.
With the company's plans to manage an additional 45 hotels in India in the next five years, the firm's total room capacity will grow to 10,000, mostly in the mid-segment category, he added.
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Smits said 70 per cent of the 45 hotels in the pipeline will be Holiday Inns and Holiday Inn Expresses. Holiday Inn Express hotels are positioned in the no-frills segment with a room charge of Rs 3,000-3,500 per night.
The six 'Holiday Inn Express ' hotels will come up in non-metro cities such as Noida, Indore, Jaipur, Kochi and Patna.
"We are investing about Rs 1,000 crore on the development of these six hotels. These will be operational between two to five years' time," Amrapali Group Chairman and Managing Director Anil Kumar Sharma said.
Amrapali Group, with an annual turnover of about Rs 2,500 crore, is expanding its activities in the hospitality sector through its arm, Amrapali Hospitality.
"Looking at the growth potential of the tourism and hospitality sector in India, we want to explore the opportunity here. Besides the six properties, we will also consider setting up hotels in Gaya and Raipur going ahead," Sharma added.
Amrapali currently owns an upcoming Crowne Plaza in Udaipur, scheduled for completion by the end of 2014.
Globally, IHG operates 2,101 Holiday Inn Express hotels and 501 such properties are under development currently. IHG also has brands such as Candlewood, Staybridge and Indigo in its global portfolio, which are not present in India.
"We do not have any plan to launch other brands here in the near future," Smits added.