Indian Hotels makes Rs870-crore preferential allocation to promoters Tata Sons

Indian Hotels Company Ltd, owners of the Taj group of hotels, today announced a preferential issue of equity shares and convertible warrants, for a total of Rs870.57 crore, to promoter group Tata Sons.

The board of directors of Indian Hotels Company Ltd, at its meeting today, approved the allotment of 3,60,00,000 ordinary shares to the promoter group at a price of Re1 each and a premium of Rs102.64 per share, or Rs103.64 a share, for a total of Rs373.10 crore (Rs3731040000).

Tata Sons would also be allocated 4,80,00,000 warrants, where each warrant would entitle the promoter group to subscribe to one ordinary share of the Indian Hotels Ltd, at a price of Re1 each and a premium of Rs102.64 per share (Rs103.64 a share), for a total of Rs497.47 crore (Rs4974720000).

The warrants are convertible into equity shares after 1 April 2011 but not later than 18 months from the date of allotment.

Tata Sons Ltd would pay 25 per cent of the share value or Rs25.91 per warrant amounting to Rs124.36 crore (Rs1,24,36,80,000) on allotment of the warrants, the company said in a release.

The allotment of shares has been made in accordance with the provisions of SEBI (Issue of Capital and Disclosure Requirements) Regulations, 2009, the release added.

The Indian Hotels Company Limited (IHCL) and its subsidiaries, popularly known as the Taj Hotels Resorts and Palaces, comprises 66 hotels in 42 locations across India with an additional 16 international hotels in the Maldives, Malaysia, Australia, UK, USA, Bhutan, Sri Lanka, Africa and the Middle East.

Incorporated by the founder of the Tata Group, Jamsetji N Tata, the company opened its first property, The Taj Mahal Palace Hotel, in Bombay in 1903.