Debt Ridden Dubai World Prepares to Sell QE2
Global investment fund Dubai World may be forced to sell the world’s most famous cruise ship, the QE2 in order to appease its creditors.
Dubai World is currently sitting on $22 billion (£14 billion) of debt, and although the sale of the QE2 would be a small drop in the ocean of the money the company would need to recoup, Dubai World needs to divest assets from its huge portfolio.
Dubai World’s private equity arm Istithmar snapped up a raft of business opportunities in the travel and hospitality trade including the W and Mandarin Oriental hotels in New York, as well as half of the Atlantis hotel in Dubai’s exclusive Jumeirah Beach.
The QE2 was bought from cruise specialists Cunard in 2007 and made its final voyage to Dubai in November 2008. The iconic vessel was due to be moored at the Jumeirah Beach as one of the world’s grandest floating hotels.
After acquiring the ship for $100 million, Dubai World’s subsidiary company Nakheel was set to overhaul the QE2 with a multimillion dollar refurbishment scheme that would have seen the iconic red funnel replaced with a glass penthouse suite, and the ship’s engine room stripped out to become a state of the art entertainment centre.
Having crashed out in the recent debt debacle surrounding the emirate, Dubai World now faces the prospect of losing the QE2 in order to recoup huge losses. The company has already offloaded a 13 per cent stake in India’s cheap flight provider SpiceJet. The sale of the QE2 could well see the cruise ship take to the seas once more.
General Travel News posted by Suzy Broadbent on 08 February 2010
Stock Tickers: DPW
Dubai World, QE2, cruise ship sell off, dubai hotels, SpiceJet sale
http://business.timesonline.co.uk/tol/business/industry_sectors/banking_and_finance/article7017847.ece
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