London, U.K.: An NRI-founded hotels company plans to set up 100 eco-friendly hotels in India in the next eight years, its founder and Chief Executive said Saturday night.

Noting that the Eco Hotels UK Plc has developed the world's first carbon neutral hotel brand, The Eco and Ecolodge, Suchit Punnose, the CEO of Red Ribbon Asset Management said: "The first market we are targeting is the growth market of India which has one of the largest demands for hotel rooms in the market."

"It is the intention of the company to develop an inventory of 10,000 rooms by 2022 which will amount to 100 hotels with 100-room average," he said.

Red Ribbon Asset Management, the owners of Eco Hotels UK, is setting up India's first steel modular buildings factory in Indapur, Pune, which will commence production in 2015 with an annual capacity to roll out 40 hotels with 100 rooms each per annum.

? "The ability of the steel modular technology to deliver a hundred room hotel completed in 24 weeks on a fixed cost and time guarantee is a powerful tool for Eco Hotels UK Plc to achieve its roll out target," said Punnose.

The Eco and Ecolodge will represent premium value budget pricing across all properties.

The properties will have solar roof top and wind turbines to generate green energy and the buildings will have high LEEDs rating as it is built on modular technology thereby significantly reducing the carbon footprint, he said.

"We are planing to increase our operating inventory levels to 300 rooms in FY 2014/15 and rapidly scale up the roll out of the franchises across the country this year.

"We have identified issues related to Indian hotel sector and have definitive plans to mitigate them to deliver uniform guest experience and value for money in a professional manner across all our properties," said Jay Krishnan, CEO of Eco Hotels UK Plc.

Eco Hotels India will create employment for nearly 12,000 people over the coming years.

"We will be setting a clear and committed target to ensure that there is responsible and sustainable development of our hotel properties and lead the way to setting a genuine commitment to tackling the environmental impact of hotels which is one of the most polluting industries in the world," Punnose said. (ZEE)


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