The struggling Euro Disney has found a strong supporter in a Saudi prince, who has injected €49.2 million (US$52.37 million) into the theme park operator through his firm under a recapitalisation plan, according to a statement on Wednesday, 18 November.
Riyadh-based Kingdom Holding Co, 95 per cent owned by the billionaire Prince Alwaleed bin Talal, confirmed its “additional investment in Euro Disney… whereby KHC fully participated in the rights issue” offered by the company which operates Disneyland Paris.
“Thus, KHC maintains its 10 per cent share ownership of the company,” it said in a statement.
Prince Alwaleed is the second-biggest shareholder of money-losing Euro Disney, whose visitor numbers dropped from 16 million to 14.2 million between 2012 and 2014. Shareholders in January approved a recapitalisation plan to raise one billion euros for the indebted theme park.
They endorsed a series of measures including €420 million of fresh funds from the US parent group and majority owner, The Walt Disney Company. The plan also called for an increase in capital and the conversion of about €600 million of debt into equity.
Kingdom Holding’s diverse interests include media stakes, banking giant Citigroup, and the Four Seasons Hotel George V Paris along with other French investments.