Shelbourne Hotel books loss as sales soar

Revenues at the firm that operates the five-star Shelbourne Hotel in Dublin soared to €35m last year, as its new owners started to reap the benefits of an overhaul.

However, it posted a pre-tax loss after its new owners hugely increased lease payments paid to a separate firm.

In 2014, US real estate specialists, Kennedy Wilson bought the hotel for €110m when it took control of the property’s debts.

New accounts show that KW Shelbourne Ops Ltd had a stellar year in 2015.

It generated average revenues for its 265 rooms of €133,000.

In all, the Shelbourne has 19 suites and 246 rooms.

The continuing boom in the Dublin hotel market contributed to its fortunes.

The accounts show the company went into the red and booked a pre-tax losses of €454,697.

That compares with the profit of €1m it made in 2014.

However, the loss is explained by the lease costs for the property paid out to another Kennedy Wilson firm.

Those costs more than doubled to €6.2m.

The company’s non-cash depreciation also increased sharply, rising from €394,027 to €1m.

The hotel was “pleased to report strong hotel revenue and performance for the year”, according to the directors.

A separate firm, Torriam Hotel Operating Company Ltd has a contract to operate the hotel and it employs over 500 people in carrying out its duties.

The directors for KW Shelbourne Ops Ltd say that the “strong performance resulted in a catch-up incentive fee payable to Torriam of €1.8m being recognised within operating expenses covering the period 2007-14 as the required hurdles were met during the year”.

They say the contract with Torriam continues to 2026.

And the directors are confident that the strong trading position will continue for some time, as the property taps increased revenues.

The separate accounts filed by Torriam for last year show it recorded revenues of €13.3m.

Staff numbers at the firm in 2015 increased from 481 to 504.

Staff costs increased from €12m to €13m. Directors’ pay came to €397,503.