The Board of Directors were pleased to recommend a special Centenary Dividend of Rs.5.50 per share in addition to the dividend of Rs4.50 per share (previous year: Rs3.70) for the year ended 31st March, 2010
Hotels
The aftermath of the terrorist attack in Mumbai in November 2008, the swine-flu pandemic and the general squeeze on corporate travel combined to adversely affect the performance of the Indian hotel industry during the year. The impact was particularly severe during the first half with occupancies and average room rates witnessing steep declines. Given the adverse business environment, the Company’s hotels business posted a 9% decline in Net Revenues during the year. The situation, however, improved during the second half aided by a strong showing by the Indian economy, with Net Revenues and PBDIT growing by 16% and 13% respectively during the last quarter of the fiscal year, reversing the declining trend witnessed in the first three quarters of the year.
The Company launched the ‘ITC Royal Gardenia’, in October 2009 at Bengaluru. This 292 room hotel is the largest LEED (Leadership in energy and Environmental Design) Platinum rated hotel in the world and the first in Asia to achieve this distinction. It was recognized as the ‘Best New Launch in the Luxury Upscale Category’ by the Hotel Investment Conference, South Asia and has successfully positioned itself in the niche segment of ‘Responsible Luxury’ within a short span of time.
The Company has a positive long term outlook for the Indian hotel industry and as such, continues to sustain its aggressive investment-led growth strategy. Construction activity of the new super luxury properties at Chennai and Kolkata are progressing satisfactorily. In addition, several new projects including joint ventures and management contracts are on the anvil to rapidly scale up the business across all the four market segments.
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