Following clearance by the European Union’s competition authority, The Abu Dhabi Investment Authority via a subsidiary Coral Reef has closed on a deal to acquire a 17-hotel portfolio in Spain.
Business advisory JLL, which brokered the deal for the sovereign wealth fund, said it is a “landmark sale of the largest hotel portfolio in Spain.”
The seller is Spain’s Equity Inmuebles fund, which is majority owned by three Spanish families — the Briones, Calero and Mazin family offices.
In June, Spanish business publication CincoDías said the deal had a price tag of €600 million ($647.5 million). Although in April 2022, CoStar News reported that the business advisory was looking to find a buyer for the portfolio at a guide price of €700 million.
The portfolio consists of full-service hotels in Spain’s most popular tourism destinations, with capital Madrid making up approximately 37% of the total room count, according to a news release.
Probably the most notable hotel in the portfolio is the 192-room ME Madrid Reina Victoria by Meliá, which occupies a 19th century palace on the Plaza de Santa Ana.
Eight of the other hotels are affiliated with brands Meliá and Sol, and the remaining eight are affiliated with Tryp by Wyndham, according to CincoDías' June report.
CincoDías also said the portfolio will be managed by Meliá Hotels Intenational.
The European Union stated the “acquisition would raise no competition concerns because of its limited impact on the market. The transaction was examined under the simplified merger review procedure.”
“This historic transaction signifies a major milestone in the real estate market. The strong interest from global investors, particularly from the Middle East, who accounted for nearly 50% of transaction volume in Spain as of August 2023, underlines the resilient and appealing nature of the hospitality sector,” said Patrick Saade, JLL’s senior managing director for hotels and hospitality capital markets in Europe, the Middle East and Africa.