Real estate investment trust Ashford Hospitality Trust Inc (AHT.N) and an institutional partner plan to buy hotel chain Highland Hospitality for $1.3 billion. Ashford will contribute $150 million in cash and take on $786 million of assumed debt, ending up with 71.74 percent of the joint venture, it said in a statement on Thursday. It did not name the institutional partner. Highland's portfolio includes 28 hotels, such as the Ritz-Carlton Atlanta and Hilton Tampa Westshore. Last August, Highland defaulted on $868 million of junior debt. Its owner JER Partners, controlled by real-estate mogul Joseph E. Robert Jr., has been negotiating with different creditors in an attempt to salvage the company. (Reporting by Ritsuko Ando; Editing by Steve Orlofsky)
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