Hotel Leelaventure said it will offer 14.95% of its equity to “prospective investors” by issue of fresh shares to help cut debt and lower interest costs. A top company official said it planned to raise as much as INR950 crore by selling a property and foraying into real estate development and is also considering bringing in a private equity investor to raise up to Rs 600 crore.
The firm has also decided against acquiring its currently leased land in Bangalore, Mumbai and Goa against shares, and will instead renew lease agreements on long-term tenure, it said in a press release on Monday. Shares of Hotel Leela have risen more than a tenth since March 1. On Monday, they were up 3.08% at INR40.15 in a weak Mumbai market.
