Singapore Corporate News - 18 Oct 2007

S'pore Food wins top award for investments in Britain

SOUPS and other ready-made meals produced by the Singapore Food Industries (SFI) in Britain are flying off the shelves of supermarkets there.

And in recognition of the firm's investments there, the British government's business arm is presenting SFI with a top business award.

The annual British Trade and Investment International Business Award, now in its fourth year, will be given to SFI for its commitment, innovation and job creation, said Mr David Campbell, the British Deputy High Commissioner and director of British trade and investment in Singapore.

CDL in US$125m Moscow hotel venture

CITY Developments Ltd (CDL) has teamed up with a company owned by Sudhir Gupta of Amtel Group for a US$125 million joint venture in Moscow that involves investing in a hotel that will be repositioned as a Copthorne (under CDL's Millennium & Copthorne Hotels chain). The tie-up will also develop conference and business facilities, among other things on a vacant site next door.

Under the agreement inked yesterday, CDL will take a 50 per cent stake in Soft Proekt, which owns the Iris Congress Hotel and a nine-storey serviced apartment building in Moscow. The remaining 50 per cent in Soft Proekt is held by Golden Orchard Hotels Pte Ltd, which is linked to Dr Gupta, who is founder and chairman of the Amtel Group of Companies.

The eight-storey Iris Congress Hotel has over 200 rooms and facilities, including 13 conference rooms. The joint venture also plans to build a mixed-use development complex on a vacant plot adjoining the existing hotel. The complex will include conference and business facilities, food and beverage areas, and a car park. Details are being finalised.

The combined land area of the site of the joint venture is 287,547 sq ft. It is located along Korovinskoye Chaussee, about 15 km north of Moscow city centre and 16 km south-east of Sheremetyevo Airport.

CDL said that Moscow is experiencing an acute shortage of hotel rooms due to its economic boom, and recorded among the highest revenue per available room growth in Europe last year.