Mfar Hotels & Resorts Ltd would invest Rs 1500 crore in the next five years to set up hotel projects in India and abroad.

The new projects would come up in major South Indian cities like Chennai, Bangalore, Hyderabad, tourist centres like Thekkady and in countries like Sri Lanka and Oman.

The new five star hotel project at Chennai would be under the Westin brand, M M Abdul Basheer, director, Mfar Hotels & Resorts told reporters here. The hotel, with 210 rooms, is being set up at a cost of Rs 300 crore.

The company is also launching a 5 star resort project at Thekkady. The Rs 75 crore project, consisting of 60 cottages, would be commissioned this year. An investment of Rs 300 crore would go into the construction of the company's hotel project at Muscat, Oman.

The project would be completed in early 2014. Le Meridien Kochi, Mfar's Kochi venture, has in the meanwhile won the award for the best hotel based five star convention hotel at the national tourism award, 2010-11.

The hotel project is managed by Starwood Hotels and Resorts Worldwide Inc. Mr Rajesh K Madan, general manager, Le Meridien Kochi said that the hotel's convention centre has led to the all round development of the region apart from making kochi a MICE (meeting, incentive, conferences and exhibitions) destination.