Northern Ireland Investment Fund has provided a £28 million development finance loan for the delivery of new Hamilton Dock hotel in Belfast’s Titanic Quarter.

CBRE’s lending team is managing the fund and the loan will be passed to JMK Group.

The Hamilton Dock site hotel is poised to offer an accommodation capacity of 230 beds in close proximity to the Titanic Exhibition and SSE Arena. This development is expected to generate around 130 job opportunities, encompassing 60 positions during the construction phase and an additional 70 full-time jobs once the hotel is operational.

Recently, Northern Ireland Investment Fund increased the scale of the project by £50 million, totalling a huge £150 million, marking the Hamilton Dock Hotel loan its largest ever.

Herbin Duffield, director at CBRE, said: “When the Northern Ireland Investment Fund (NIIF) launched in 2018 there was sufficient debt liquidity and supply of new hotel developments in Belfast. The pandemic and rising interest rates have tested those conditions, and supply and debt liquidity is now more constrained.

“NIIF is addressing market failure and providing debt funding that will create jobs in a key regeneration area in the city’s Titanic Quarter by delivering a hotel with strong environmental and sustainability credentials.

“Having explored a range of funding options and solutions for this site, we are delighted to have committed a loan facility to finance the delivery of this project.”

Zain Kajani, director at JMK, added: “We are pleased to have the funding in place and break ground at the JMK group’s first hotel in Northern Ireland, adding further depth to our hotel portfolio in the UK and Republic of Ireland, and aligning with our expansion strategy and forward-thinking approach to drive sustainability. The hotel/aparthotel will be branded Aloft & Residence Inn by Marriott. The combination of the international brand and the asset being in a prime location in front of the Titanic Museum, which is Belfast’s number one tourist attraction, will ensure the hotel & aparthotel have a bright future ahead.

“Furthermore, the asset will be one of the greenest hotels in Northern Ireland with BREEAM ‘Excellent’ and LEED ‘Gold’ credentials aligning with the group’s sustainable strategy. The financing from the Northern Ireland Investment Fund and approach by CBRE were crucial to ensuring the successful delivery of this project.”