Accor is to sell 76 hotel properties to Fonciere des Murs for over $700 million. The transaction, with the equivalent market value of 583 million euros, concerns 59 hotels and 5 Thalassotherapy institutes in France and 12 hotels in Belgium, for a total of 8,300 rooms.

Accor will continue to manage the hotels under the Novotel, Mercure and Ibis names. Rent will equal on average 14% of revenues for a period of twelve years. The contract is renewable four times, for a total of 60 years.

As with the first transaction carried out in June 2005, this sale is designed to reduce earnings volatility by making use of variable leases based on a percentage of revenues with no minimum guaranteed.

With this development, Accor and Fonciere des Murs are building on a year-old partnership in hotel real estate management that supports both of their growth plans.

With 168,000 people in 140 countries, Accor is the European leader and one of the world’s largest groups in travel, tourism and corporate services, with two major international activities:

- Hotels, with the Sofitel, Novotel, Mercure, Suitehotel, Ibis, Etap Hotel, Formule 1, Motel 6 and Red Roof Inns, representing more than 4,000 hotels and 470,000 rooms in 92 countries, as well such strategically related businesses as restaurants and food services (with Lenotre and other leading brands), casinos and travel agencies.

- Services to corporate clients and public institutions: 21 million people in 35 countries use a broad range of services (food vouchers, people care and services, incentive, loyalty programs) engineered and managed by Accor Services.
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