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   NEW YORK--(Business Wire)--Sahara India Pariwar, an India-based conglomerate, today completed the purchaseof a 75 percent interest in the iconic Plaza Hotel New York from real estatecompany El Ad US Holdings` position in the hotel with a total valuation of $575million. The acquisition includes 230 hotel rooms and retail space. Co-ownerKingdom Holding Co., controlled by Saudi billionaire Prince Alwaleed bin Talal,will retain its 25 percent stake in the property. Solid Rock Advisors, a realestate consulting firm specializing in luxury resort and hotel transactions,advised the seller in the transaction. Fairmont Hotels & Resorts will continueto operate the hotel under a long-term agreement. The iconic Plaza Hotel is located in Manhattan, adjacent to Central Park.Notable guests of the Plaza over the years have included Eleanor Roosevelt, theBeatles, Mark Twain and Groucho Marx. Donald Trump is a former owner of thehotel. "This was a great opportunity for the buyer to expand into a key U.S. gatewaymarket with the purchase of such an irreplaceable asset as the Plaza Hotel,"said Solid Rock`s President Greg Rice. "The corner of 59th Street and FifthAvenue is arguably one of the world`s most valuable pieces of real estate." "The New York City hotel real estate market remains one of the world`s mostattractive investments. There currently are more buyers than sellers in themarket. It is the world`s most liquid market and is excellent for capitalpreservation as it consistently outperforms inflation. There also is upside inthe hotel market as it has not yet reached pre-recession levels. Capital is morewidely available for buyers now, and sellers are making strategic decisions tobring their assets to market in this favorable environment," Rice added. "Whileluxury hotels in New York City in particular have been one of the harder hitsegments of the hospitality industry recently, they will benefit from stronggrowth as room rates return to their peak levels." About Kingdom Holding CompanyKingdom Holding Company, led by HRH Prince Alwaleed bin Talal, is one of theworld`s premier international investment companies with holdings in some of theworld`s best known companies and brands, including Four Seasons Hotels, Apple,Time Warner, Samba, Citigroup, Pepsi, Walt Disney and Fairmont Hotels. Based inSaudi Arabia, The company`s vision is to `invest in the best` through a strategyof investing long-term in high performance companies with leading brands, About El Ad US HoldingsEl Ad US Holdings is one of the nation`s leading real estate companies,responsible for the acquisition, development and conversion of architecturallysignificant residential and commercial properties in key markets throughoutNorth America. El Ad`s portfolio contains a number of significant projects,including the O`Neill Building, The Link condominium tower, 21 Astor Place, 224West 18th and 49 East 21st in New York City, as well as the new CarlyleResidences in Los Angeles and the Edgewater Hotel in Miami. About Sahara India PariwarSahara India Pariwar is a major business conglomerate in India with operationsin multiple sectors, including financial services, life insurance, mutual funds,housing finance, infrastructure & housing, print and television news media,entertainment channels, cinema production, consumer merchandise retail,healthcare, hospitality, manufacturing, sports, and information technology. Thegroup is run by Subrata Roy who owns a five-star Mumbai hotel, a top-ratedcricket team and TV channels in India, and who acquired London's Grosvenor'sHouse in 2010 for $726 million. Time magazine referred to Sahara, in 2004, as"the second largest employer in India" after the Indian Railways. About Solid Rock Advisors LLC.Solid Rock Advisors, led by Greg Rice, is a real estate consulting firmspecializing in high-end and luxury resorts and hotel transactions. SRA`sextensive experience in asset management, consulting, brokerage and arrangementof financing has involved more than 150 properties and $6 billion of marketvalue over the past 15 years. Solid Rock Advisors has offices in New York,Colorado, California and Hawaii. See 
  www.solidrockadvisors.com
  for additionalinformation.  Solid Rock AdvisorsGreg Rice, 917-807-8388Mrhotels@aol.comCopyright Business Wire 2012