The first two state-backed finance packages for private hotel developments as part of preparations for the 2014 World Cup and 2016 Rio Olympics have just been approved, with a wave of others on the way.
Brazil´s National Development Bank (BNDES) is behind the ´Procopa Turismo´ program, which aims to stimulate the expansion and modernisation of the hotel network in the twelve World Cup 2014 host cities, including Rio de Janeiro.
The two initial projects are both in Rio: the 88 year old Hotel Glória, which will receive R$146.5 million as part of an ongoing R$260 million refurbishment, and a new R$25 million Ibis hotel on Copacabana Beach, which will receive R$11.6 million.
The two packages are part of an opening wave of R$709.4 million in finance requests, with the program´s overall budget amounting to R$1.2 billion. BNDES indicated that their initial estimate is that over 30 hotel projects will receive the specialised financing.
>> In associated news, recent Austrade meetings in both Rio de Janeiro and Belo Horizonte have confirmed strong interest in attracting foreign investors and hotel groups to be a part of the expansion of the country´s accommodation sector, with significant fiscal and tax incentives on offer.