Sheraton Abuja Hotel will henceforth be known as Abuja Continental Hotel, its owners, Capital Hotels Plc, announced the name change in a regulatory filing.

The disclosure marks the first corporate action by Capital Hotels since it was acquired by 22 Hospitality Limited in late September, a deal that sold a controlling stake of 66.1 per cent in the company to the latter. That is equivalent to 2.1 billion ordinary shares.

“The Hotel has also been reopened for operations while renovations are ongoing to bring the Hotel to the standard befitting its status as a Five Star Hotel,” the document said.

Capital Hotels has not reported a profit in the past three years. Capital Hotels set out early in 2022 to raise capital by way of rights issue to renovate the luxury hotel but the proposal was stalled by shareholders’ refusal to endorse the move on the grounds that the pricing of the rights issue would erode their rights.

That forced the board to explore private placement, easing the path for 22 Hospitality to become the new owner.

The 1.6 billion shares allotted to 22 Hospitality following the transaction was valued at N11.3 billion, in addition to share purchases by the new owner from strategic shareholders like Hans Gremlin Nigeria Limited and Associated Ventures International Limited who parted with 456.6 million and 21.6 million shares, respectively.

Bank of Industry Limited, Ministry of Finance Incorporated, Nigeria Re-insurance Corporation and Continental Energy Resources Limited are among the substantial shareholders of Capital Hotels, according to its 2021 audited financial statement.