Sale of Umubano Hotel put on hold

The sale of Umubano Hotel has been put on hold after a Libyan government-affiliated company that holds the majority shares in the hotel pledged to renovate it, a senior member on the hotel board said yesterday.Rosemary Mbabazi, Soprotel board chairperson, revealed plans to put the hotel’s sale on hold in an interview with The New Times.Soprotel is a joint venture company in which Libyan Government’s Laico Group owns 60 per cent of the hotel’s shares while the rest is owned by the Government of Rwanda.“After the UN sanctions on Libya (imposed) during the anti-Muammar Gadaffi revolution, the Libyan shareholders assumed their representation in Soprotel,” Mbabazi told this paper. “On their return they pledged to renovate the company while the Rwandan government as a shareholder requested RDB (Rwanda Development Board) to carry out a thorough inspection of the status of the hotel.”The government had earlier stated that only companies experienced in running hotels and with a clear and strong investment plan to bring something new in the market would be allowed to buy the hotel.EvaluationThe government commissioned international group PricewaterhouseCoopers to evaluate the value of the hotel as part of its resale process, an endeavour that did not rule out the eligibility of Laico Group from bidding along with other new bidders.Though Mbabazi said the hotel’s evaluation exercise is complete and its market value remains a secret for future resale and business purposes, she said that the sale itself has been put on hold because Laico Group want to renovate the hotel themselves.“Two activities are in process: feasibility study for renovation and inspection of the status of the hotel,” Mbabazi said.Umubano Hotel is one of the few major hotels that were in place in Rwanda before the 1994 Genocide against the Tutsi which now benefits from that long presence in the market but needs a major structural overhaul, according to shareholders. The hotel’s renovation plans have been pending and those who rate performance of hospitality facilities have often left it out because its status was considered temporary for renovation purposes.

National

Sale of Umubano Hotel put on hold