EasyHotel gets planning permission for Barcelona hotel

EasyHotel has been granted planning permission for a 204-room hotel on Gran Via in Barcelona.

The group said acquisition of the land for the new-build hotel is expected to complete in the coming weeks and the hotel is due to open in early 2018.

Last week, EasyHotel said it had raised £38m through the placing of new shares as it looks to fund its expansion across Europe.

Chief executive Guy Parsons said at the time: "With more opportunities available than had been expected, and over 4,500 rooms committed or identified in the owned and franchise development pipeline, the proceeds of the placing will primarily be used to fund the continuation of our owned hotel roll-out to deliver enhanced financial returns, whilst consolidating EasyHotel's position as a leader in the super budget hotel market in Europe and the Middle East."

At 0955 BST, the shares were up 2.2% to 95.54p.