The Dusit Thani Group, one of the oldest Thai hotel companies, has renewed its expansion abroad after years of retreat, with deals for the construction and management of properties in India.

Dusit Thani CEO Chanin Dhonavanik said the company had inked a hotel-management deal with India's Bird Group and was considering the possibility of jointly investing in the construction of new properties with its Indian partner.

"We haven't yet finalised the pattern of joint investment in construction, but we have inked the management deal," Chanin said.

Dusit retreated from its investment in Germany years ago. Recently it re-entered the Philippine market and managed a hotel each in Indonesia, Dubai and Burma.

Dusit Thani on Thursday signed an agreement with the Bird Group, a subsidiary of Bird Hospitality Services (BHS) of India, to form a 50:50 hotel-management joint venture that will handle BHS hotels in India. Dusit Thani's investment in the joint venture is US$800,000 (Bt27.99 million).

Under the agreement, BHS is committed to developing six four- and five-star hotels.

The first three properties, projected to open within the next few years, will be in Delhi, Goa and Rishikesh, and the next three, by 2013, will be in Pune, Amritsar and Jaipur.

The total investment from BHS in the six hotels is more than $200 million.

Chanin said that India was a market that was ready to be tapped into. It has the right resources, an unspoiled environment and capable people to ensure the healthy growth of its hospitality industry, he said.

"We believe that India is ready for newer experiences and cultures from overseas hotel chains. At the same time, Dusit is eager to learn from what India has to offer. It will be a shared experience that's going to be exciting and instructive for both Bird Hospitality and Dusit," said Chanin.

In the first phase, (Delhi, Goa and Rishikesh), the properties will collectively comprise 500 deluxe rooms and suites. They will have state-of-the-art equipped meeting rooms and the latest audio-visual facilities for meetings and conferences. Each property will also have a deluxe spa.

Ankur Bhatia, the Bird Group's executive director, said the group had been involved in the travel and tourism industry for almost four decades.

Seeing the tremendous demand and burgeoning growth in this sector, it was only logical to move into the hospitality industry, he said.

"We are delighted to enter into a strategic alliance with Dusit, Thailand's leading and longest-established hotel group. Considering that India is witnessing a tremendous boom with more than four million inbound visitors last year with a double-digit growth forecast year on year to 2020, this partnership comes at an opportune time. Our main focus will be to provide a world-class experience for our guests with quality service that blends efficiency with a traditional touch," said Bhatia.

He said Delhi was already short of business and leisure hotels, which would be further exacerbated with the Commonwealth Games in 2010.

Meanwhile Goa is growing as a tourist destination for both local and overseas visitors, and Rishikesh is also witnessing a sharp rise in demand for leisure and meeting and exhibition facilities.

The Bird Group is one of the largest diversified groups in the aviation, travel and information-technology sectors. It offers solutions to meet the rapidly changing business environment.

Suchat Sritama

The Nation