The new attempt

Cologne. In the course of the business unbundling, Neue Dorint GmbH, operator company of Dorint Hotels & Resorts, was sold to the newly founded Honestis AG by its former owner E&P. Honestis AG consists of new and old shareholders.

London/Cologne. InterContinental Hotels & Resorts has surprisingly announced the termination of management contracts for three of six locations in Germany effective as of March 31, 2011. The hotels affected are those in Berlin, Duesseldorf and Cologne. There other InterConti hotels are in Hamburg, Frankfurt and Berchtesgaden. The background to the decision is the long-standing legal dispute with Neue Dorint GmbH for which InterConti has managed the hotels up to now. The news hit like a bomb. Particularly surprising and difficult to understand is that IHG risks losing a hotel in a prime location on Budapester Strasse in the very heart of Berlin - a hotel in which American Presidents reside and renowned congresses take place. At present, it seems, IHG still has no alternative locations. Behind the scenes, tempers have obviously flared. Now the lawyers are at work. Speculation abounds: Is InterConti simply playing a game of poker in a bid to secure better terms – like in Hamburg a year ago? As lessee of the hotels, this would be an additional burden on Neue Dorint GmbH, which has just managed to bring itself forward.