Hótel Sigló and More for Sale

Investor and businessman Róbert Guðfinnsson in Siglufjörður, North Iceland, has decided to put all his tourism-related properties up for sale, Morgunblaðið reports. Those include Sigló Hótel, Hvanneyri Guesthouse, the restaurants Rauðka and Hannes Boy, as well as the restaurant Sunna, located at Sigló Hótel.

“I’ve been building up two [business] units in Siglufjörður,” Róbert states, “on the one hand in the tourism industry and on the other hand in the biotech firm Genis. It is quite clear that Genis will require a great deal of attention in the coming seasons, since that’s where enormous opportunities lie. Therefore, I must choose between taking good care of either Genis or the travel industry. I’ve been looking into whether other parties are ready to invest in further development of the tourism unit or to purchase it as a whole.”

Róbert is very proud of how he has built up tourism services in the town, “[b]ut to make it the way I’ve dreamt of, it needs more investment…The question is whether someone is ready to take over the reins and continue the development.” He notes that Icelandic as well as foreign investors have shown interest. “Clearly, the opportunities involved are great…The question is just how [the project] will continue to be developed and made stronger and more elegant.” He expects the properties to be sold in the coming months.

The biotech company Genis is a pioneer in the development of therapeutic chitin derivatives. Chitin is a polysaccharide, found, for example, in shrimp shells. The company has launched a drug development program and is currently producing, among other things, the natural food supplement Benecta. Genis employs 17 people.