Whitbread said today it has concluded the sale of its interest in the Marriott Hotels 50/50 joint venture to Royal Bank of Scotland, clearing the way for the group's £400 million return to shareholders.
Whitbread said it will receive £237 million from the sale.
The joint venture, which owns 46 Marriott branded hotels, was formed last year following Whitbread's announcement to exit from the operation and ownership of its franchised four-star hotel business.
The deal, which delivers the majority of the asset disposal programme Whitbread announced last year, values the joint venture at £951.4 million. Whitbread has also today agreed to sell the Leicester Marriott hotel development to RBS for £30 million.