Updated 7.15pm with Portelli statement
Joseph Portelli is to acquire the lease of Fort Tigne from MIDI against a €2.5 million payment.
MIDI said in a statement to the market on Tuesday afternoon that it has entered into a promise of sale with Portelli’s firm J Portelli Projects Ltd.
Once finalised, the deal will grant Portelli title over the historic Sliema fort, its surrounding grounds and a portion of land at basement level at Tigne Point for the next 75 years.
No further details about the land in question were disclosed in the company announcement.
A spokesperson for Portelli told The Business Picture the company plans to turn the fort into a “high-end, low-density hotel” that will “respect the character of the historic fort while ensuring a very low visual and environmental impact.”
The basement area included in the deal will serve as an unloading bay, the spokesperson added.
The promise of sale agreement is valid until April 30 and is subject to a number of undisclosed conditions, MIDI said in its statement.
MIDI said it intends to use money from the land transfer to help repay a €50 million bond which is due in July 2026.The property is currently vacant.
Fort Tigne was built by the Knights of St John in the late 18th-century and is one of the oldest polygonal forts in the world. It was used by the British military in ensuing centuries but subsequently fell into disrepair.
The fort was included in a mega-deal the government signed with MIDI in 2000, through which the private consortium was granted a 99-year lease over land in Tigne Point and Manoel Island.
MIDI subsequently restored the fort and built a complex of residences, offices and retail outlets around it. It spun off a subsidiary, Tigne Mall plc, to operate a shopping mall in the area. That subsidiary was acquired by Hili Ventures last year.
MIDI is currently locked in negotiations with the government over its Manoel Island concession. The company initially intended to develop the site but backed down in the face of public pressure and a pledge by the government to turn the site into a national park.
The company’s shares closed at €0.17c on Wednesday on flat trading. Shares traded as high as €0.25c in June.
