UniCredit backs The Student Hotel with €145m impact loan
PBSA company The Student Hotel has lined up €145 million in social and environmental impact financing for two new developments in Italy.
Italy-headquartered bank UniCredit is providing the finance for the projects in Rome San Lorenzo and Florence Belfiore.
Financial insurance company SACE, is supporting the financing with a green guarantee of €54 million.
The loan requires that both schemes achieve a BREEAM Very Good rating and adhere to the EU Taxonomy for sustainable activities.
The impact financing terms agreed by TSH and UniCredit take the form of a discount on the borrowing rate. TSH has in turn committed to reinvest this by providing rent reduction scholarships to students from disadvantaged socio-economic backgrounds.
The bank said that the impact financing terms are in line with its social impact banking programme and it follows existing financing that it provided to TSH for hybrid hospitality projects in Florence Lavagnini, Bologna and Vienna.
The latest projects support the regeneration of the San Lorenzo district in Rome and the Belfiore district in Florence and bring The Student Hotel’s Italy operations to five.
Construction of the Rome development will start in March and will create a 396-room hotel with a floor area of over 22,750 sq m. The facility will have a restaurant, bar, meeting and co-working spaces and a gym and a public park of over 15.000 sq m that is accessible to all.
TSH is investing over €90 million in the scheme which is due to open in winter 2023-24.
The €160 million Florence project (pictured below) will create a 550-room hotel with a floor area of over 80,000 sq m. Construction started in September 2021 and the hotel is expected to open before summer 2024. The project includes a public running track on the roof of the building.
TSH founder and CEO Charlie McGregor said: ” The sustainable and impact finance terms align with TSH’s continued commitment to minimise our environmental impact and maximise our impact on local communities as part of our growth strategy.”
TSH expects to open another 10 hotels across Europe by 2025, increasing its operation to 25 hotels. The company recently secured €300 million from existing shareholders to fund its growth. This year it will open hotels in Madrid, Barcelona and Toulouse.
