The InterContinental Hotel in Nairobi has surrendered various properties for auction after the building’s owners decided to turn the 389-room hotel into a mall.
According to documents obtained from Garam Auctioneers, some of the cars being auctioned include a Range Rover Discovery, Mercedes Benz Sprinter and an Isuzu FRR.
Other items which were also listed comprised furniture, computers, bedsheets, televisions, carpets, and kitchen equipment.
A report by Business Daily said that Kenya Hotel Properties which owns the building is recruiting a consultant to help convert the hotel into a profitable premises.
Some of the options the owners who include associates of former president Daniel arap Moi are considering include; office blocks, stalls and mini-hotels all in one building such as a mall.
The government also has a 33.8 per cent stake in the five-star hotel which at its peak offered accommodation to high profile guests and heads of state.
For years now the state has been looking for a buyer to offload its share to and the new plans could complicate the intended sale.
With a 19.2 percent stake, the Moi-linked Sovereign Group is the largest individual local investor in the hotel, while Development Bank of Kenya has a 12.99 percent stake.
Joshua Kulei, former President Moi’s former private secretary, Rodger Kacou and Ahmed Jibril own a combined stake of less than one percent in the firm.
The Intercontinental Hotels Corporation Group, which is listed in both the UK and the USA, has a 33.8 percent stake in the hotel group.
InterContinental Hotel closure
In the midst of the Covid-19 economic crisis, the InterContinental Hotel announced in August that it would terminate its lease agreements with KHP, the hotel's holding company, and close the facility.
As a result, Sovereign Group appeared to be the most likely candidate to acquire the 33.8 percent stake prior to its sale to outsiders.
The InterContinental Hotel has been struggling prior to the pandemic, and it was deemed insolvent after having failed to service its financial obligations amounting Sh717 million