French hotel group Accor has taken control of 52 Dorint hotels in Germany.
The Paris-based company, which owns brands including Sofitel, Novotel and Ibis, previously held a 34% in Dorint.
But after a re-structuring by the Dorint board which split the group into two, Accor has paid 52m for a controlling interest in one of the two new companies.
This gives it control of 52 of Dorint's 93 mid- and upmarket properties.
Of these hotels, eight were operated under the Dorint Sofitel brand, 17 under the Dorint Novotel brand and 27 under the Dorint Mercure brand.
They will all now be re-branded without the Dorint pre-fix.
Accor has also agreed to pay a further 75m within the next six months to buy out most of the minority interests. This will give it a 90% in the company.
It said the 52 hotels it has bought are expected to bring in 300m in revenue and a 10m pre-tax profit in 2007.
The purchase leaves Accor, with a portfolio of 331 hotels, as the leading hotel operator in Germany and Mercure, with 134 properties, as the leading brand.
Accor said that the move came at a time when the German economic environment was
"favourable" and its hotel industry "showing a very clear improvement" as demand had risen sharply while room supply had not significantly increased.
"Strategically, the transaction enables Accor to complete the programme launched in 2003 to reposition the Sofitel, Novotel and Mercure networks in Germany," it said.
Gilles Pélisson, Accor's ceo, said: "With a strengthened presence in one of today's most dynamic European markets, Accor is ready to capitalise on its past partnership with Dorint, thanks to a repositioned network on downtown locations, which will enable the emergence in Germany of the Sofitel and Novotel brands and the consolidation of the Mercure network."
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