TPS Eastern Africa, the owner of the Serena hospitality brand, plans to build a multi-purpose conference facility next to its Nairobi hotel, targeting increased demand for meetings, conferences and exhibitions.
The company’s chief executive, Ashish Sharma said the work on the project is subject to board approval following a detailed feasibility study.
“We have a piece of land opposite Nairobi Serena hotel that we call the green triangle that currently operates as our parking space. This is the land where we plan to build the multi-purpose real estate building,” Mr Sharma said in an interview. “This is a longer-term project.”
The planned development on the 1.12-acre--triangle is expected to include banqueting space, meeting rooms, office space, and an additional car park.
The development will align with green building standards, including sustainability of building sites, water conservation, energy efficiency, construction materials, and indoor air quality.
Serena Hotels Africa CEO Ashish Sharma speaks on expansion plans
The additional conference facility marks an expansion by the Nairobi Securities Exchange-listed firm which currently draws most of its revenue from hotels and lodges and in Kenya, Uganda and Tanzania.
The renewed investment appetite comes at a time when the company has recovered from the slump that followed the outbreak of the Covid-19 pandemic in early 2020.
The company posted a net profit of Sh870.87 million in the year ended December 2023, marking 2.3 times jump from the previous year on increased business.
The latest profit is a growth from Sh379.69 million posted in the previous year and translates to record earnings, overtaking the previous peak net profit of Sh615.8 million in 2011.
Revenue in the review period rose to Sh9.6 billion from Sh6.9 billion a year earlier.
Editor's note: The story is revised to indicate that the cost and size of the upgrade will be revealed by a planned feasiability study. The Monday edition indicated that TPS Eastern Africa will build the multipurpose conference facility at Sh3.8bn. We regret the omission and any inconvenience caused.
