| Delhi International Airport Private Limited (DIAL), the public-private joint venture that is modernising the city's airport, is considering the applications of 15 leading Indian and foreign hotel and real estate chains to develop 45 acres of commercial land near the international terminal. |
| Nine of these applicants have been shortlisted and four are being considered to participate in a competitive bidding process to select a final list of developers. |
| The shortlist includes hotel chains like Delhi-based Claridges, European hotel chain Accor and US-based Starwood (which owns the Le Meridien and Sheraton brands). The realty firms in the shortlist are Emaar MGF, Parsvnath, Omaxe, Vipul, DB Realty, Pacifica and Marathon. |
| Parsvnath and Omaxe are listed entities. Those with applications under consideration for short-listing include top hotel chains ITC, Indian Hotels and Lemon Tree and engineering and construction giant Larsen & Toubro. A DIAL spokesperson however declined to comment on the issue. |
| The company had invited 45 requests for proposals (RFPs) to develop various categories of hotels in the "hospitality district". The district will be divided into five or six land parcels for premium, upscale, business, convention and budget hotels. It would also have office space for freight operators and travel agencies, apart from restaurants and other commercial spaces. |
| The developer can bid for the entire area or one or more land parcels. Developers that are selected have to sign an agreement with DIAL for the annual rental for 58 years (28 years, with an option for the developer to renew for an additional 30 years), which is co-terminus with DIAL's agreements with the government. |
| As part of the bid documents, prospective bidders have to pay a minimum of Rs 63 crore per acre upfront as refundable deposit, which accounts for eight per cent of the rental value of the land for 58 years. |
| The Rs 2,835 crore that DIAL expects to get from the deposit will be reinvested in financing the airport project. The minimum base rental price for the bid is Rs 1.58 crore per acre for the first year which goes up by a pre-determined formula every year for 58 years. The numbers could be higher depending on how companies have bid. |
| Delhi Aerotropolis Private Limited (DAPL), a 100 per cent subsidiary of DIAL, will provide infrastructure support like master planning, water, power, lighting, fire-fighting facilities and so on. |
| The land on offer is considered extremely attractive because commercial land in the area is scarce. |
| The land is also valued for its proximity to the fast-developing suburb of Gurgaon "� the hub of multinational companies and the ITES business "� and Delhi's business district, Connaught Place. It also affords easy connectivity to the national highway network. |
| An idea of the premiums it can fetch can be had from Dwarka, the location closest to the DIAL site. DLF successfully bid Rs 901.08 crore (or Rs 25 crore an acre) in June for a 35-acre site to develop an international convention centre. |
| Last December, Parsvnath bid around Rs 75 crore per acre for a six-acre plot to develop a five-star deluxe hotel and shopping mall. |
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