Minor mulling hotel investment plans

"We're studying it carefully. As cash is king, we would keep cash. We can always delay, if we're in deep economic recession," said chairman and chief executive officer William Heinecke.

Heinecke said the delay could entail projects under construction, like St Regis, a luxury property on Rajdamri Road.

But the company will proceed with its investment plans overseas, as the overseas hotel business is not affected as severely as in Thailand by the global economic recession.

"Thailand is now in the perfect storm. Aside from global recession, there are demonstrations, government instability and the closure of airports. It's the perfect instability," Heinecke said,

adding that the closure of Suvarnabhumi Airport had significantly scared tourists away from Thailand.

In Thailand, the St Regis Hotel Bangkok and the Anantara Khao Lak Resort and Spa were scheduled to open in 2010. Among to-be-opened properties overseas are the Anantara Kihavah Huravalhu in the Maldives and properties in Tanzania, Dubai, Vietnam and Abu Dhabi.

Minor's hotel properties witnessed booking cancellations for November and December worth Bt180 million, excluding potential income from food and beverage, after the closure. Once the airport reopened, it recouped half of the guests. Heinecke noted that the group had not recovered what it lost and the situation would not be normal until political stability was reinstated.

The group's average occupancy rate in this year's high season is at only 70 per cent, down from 99 per cent last peak season. The newly opened Anantara at Sikao now runs at 40-per-cent occupancy while the occupancy rate of the property in Phuket is 60 per cent.