Accor is a French multinational hotel group has bid $1.18 billion ($920 million) for Mantra Group Ltd a deal that would collaborate two biggest hotel owners in Australia and seek to capitalise on surging tourism in the country.
Accor, already the biggest hotelier in Australia, offered A$3.96 a share, or a 23 percent premium to Mantra’s closing price on Friday.
The total bid offer is worth A$4.02 per share if a six-cent final dividend paid in 2017 is included.
This business deal would be the second-largest in Australia’s hotel sector. But the hotel and hospitality industry is quite split and shares in Mantra,which is listed in Sydney has surged about 17 percent on Monday as investors bet the deal would have a fair shot at gaining regulatory clearance.
Mantra said that it was allowing Accor to conduct due diligence to determine if a transaction can be agreed and recommended unanimously by the Mantra board.
The business bid of Accor comes as the hoteliers of Australia rush to build extra rooms to meet growing demand in the tourism year.
The number of visitors to Australia surged about 9 percent in the past financial year to hit a record 7.9 million while spending by international visitors climbed to $40.6 billion.