Kingdom Hotel Investments acquires a newly constructed apartment building in Bur Dubai

KHI plans to spend US$4.4 million on furnishing, finishing and upgrading the facilities to match 5-star serviced apartments standards. The property will be named Mövenpick Bur Dubai Residences and will provide additional capacity to this successful hotel through fully serviced apartments and facilities.

The Mövenpick Bur Dubai Residences, will provide 63 hotel apartments (with an average apartment size of 110m2), a swimming pool, gym, retail outlets and underground parking, which will further build on the demand for accommodation in Dubai and the Bur Dubai area in particular. These apartments will be furnished by KHI and fully operational by the first quarter of 2007. The property will target the short to medium-stay guests, in particular the growing demand from overseas outpatients of the new medical facilities currently under construction in Healthcare City, as well as longer-term visitors to Dubai.

The financing of the Mövenpick Bur Dubai Residences has been completed with Emirates Bank International providing a US$27 million loan, and with US$2.3 million of equity provided by KHI, which translates into an attractive debt-to-equity ratio of 91.5%.

Additional development and room expansion is also currently in progress at the Mövenpick Bur Dubai hotel. A new spa and fitness centre is in the construction phase on the first floor of the hotel, whilst a further 39 new guest rooms are also being added to the hotel. Following the acquisition of the residences and the completion of the hotel's expansion, the hotel will increase its inventory from 232 keys to 324.

HRH Prince Alwaleed Bin Talal, Chairman of KHI, said: "The Mövenpick Bur Dubai hotel goes from strength to strength and we are delighted to have the opportunity to extend its offering through the development of the Mövenpick Bur Dubai Residences."

Sarmad Zok, Chief Executive Officer of KHI, said; "Dubai is an area of ever-increasing business and tourism and we are confident of continuing demand in our prime location. The Mövenpick Bur Dubai Residences are an example of our ability to actively asset-manage our properties, where we have reacted quickly to demand growth with the addition of capacity."