Indian conglomerate Reliance Industries has purchased a majority stake in the Mandarin Oriental Hotel at Columbus Circle for nearly $100 million, according to published reports.
The Times of India says the company owned by billionaire Mukesh Ambani will take control of the iconic luxury hotel, located at 80 Columbus Circle and towering over Central Park, thanks to a $98.15 million deal.
Reliance announced in a stock exchange filing that its industrial investments subsidiary is set to acquire the Cayman Islands-based Columbus Centre Corp, which owns a 73.37 percent stake in the Mandarin Oriental New York, Reuters reported. The deal is expected to close in March.
Like most hotels in the city, the 248-room Mandarin Oriental Hotel at Columbus Circle ran into tough times as the pandemic bore down on New York, closing at the onset before reopening on April 1, 2021. The property was valued at as much as $340 million in 2007, according to the New York Post, which speculated in September that a distressed lodging market in the city could suppress the price to about $100 million.
Rooms at the hotel were being offered on its website for close to $700 a night on Saturday afternoon, with one night free on a more than three-night stay.
The hotel takes up about 20 floors in the twin-towered skyscraper at Columbus Circle. It features a ballroom, spa and a number of restaurants and bars including MO Lounge.
It is presently run by the Mandarin Oriental Hotel Group under a long-term contract, according to the Post. That group also provides hotel services to more than 60 condo apartments in the north tower.
Reliance added that if other owners of the hotel are interested in selling based on the same valuation, it would make the move to acquire the 100 percent stake.
[Times of India] — Vince DiMiceli