John Keells Holdings, Aitken Spence and Cargills Ceylon are among local and foreign firms that have expressed interest following a public advertisement inviting a management partner for the Bank of Ceylon-owned Grand Oriental Hotel (GOH), according to hotel industry sources.
A source close to GOH told the Business Times that Singapore’s Raffles, four Indian hotel chains, Midddle East investors and European ones have also sent their Expressions of Interests (EOIs) to the Bank of Ceylon (BOC).He added that Raffles had expressed an interest in managing GOH a couple of years ago, further adding that the applicants are requesting the entire complex of buildings starting with GOH up to the Seylan Bank end.
Gamini Wickremasinghe, Chairman BOC told the Business that 26 firms have sent EOI. “We are looking at a management contract deal with an investor who can spent for refurbishment as well on this 200-room heritage hotel,” he said but declined to comment on the applicants.
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Found this fascinating colour photograph of Grand Oriental Hotel (GOH) in 1910. I just wonder if the statue on the left is the same statue of Queen Victoria that has now been reloctaed to Natural History Museum grounds at Green Path.
ReplyDeletehttp://lankapura.com/2010/01/goh-victoria-arcade-colombo-ceylon-c-1910s/