French hospitality major Accor has announced plans to expand in the Indian budget hotel space, envisaging opening 19 committed properties under its value-budget Hotel Formule1 brand in the coming years.

Presently, Hotel Formule1 has three properties, in Bangalore (Whitefield), Ahmedabad and Greater Noida, and will soon be opening more in Pune, Hyderabad and Gurgaon, taking the total number of hotels in the country to seven in 2014.

“The idea is to have a total of 10 operational hotels by the end of next year,” Hotel Formule1 Vice-President Philip Logan said, adding that of the 19 committed projects, the first 15 of them have 60 per cent investment from hospitality investment firm SAMHI, while Accor holds 40 per cent.

Logan, however, declined to share specific investment details about the brand.