Bangkok--1 Jul--Ogilvy Public Relations Worldwide The M.A. Kharafi Group has created an independent hospitality, tourism and real estate investment company based in Geneva, Switzerland under the name of Sovereign Hospitality Holdings. The new company has regional offices in South Africa and Egypt, and has been launched to expand through strategic acquisitions, financing and developing assets in the Hotel, Real Estate and Tourism Industry in Thailand and worldwide. Sovereign Hospitality Holdings has seamlessly integrated assets of US$800 million to date, and is a member of the M.A Kharafi Group, a Fortune 500 company registered in Kuwait with an annual turnover of US$4 Billion. The M.A. Kharafi Group operates in 25 countries and employs more than 100,000 employees worldwide. Sovereign Hospitality Holdings’ existing portfolio consists of 21 hotels and resorts with over 4000 rooms which it owns and operates in Egypt, South Africa, The Gambia, Syria, Lebanon and Albania. Further projects are under development in Libya, Senegal, Ethiopia and Mauritania. Sovereign Hospitality Holdings is looking to expand the geographical reach of its hotel, resort and real estate portfolio globally in both emerging and established markets. This will be achieved through a mixture of organic development and portfolio acquisitions that are financed and thereafter proactively managed. The portfolio is set to increase significantly with the completion of 11 further unique hospitality developments which will encompass some 1,800 additional rooms reaching a total of 5,800 rooms over the next 3 years, totalling 32 hotels in 10 countries. In addition to owning and managing its hotels, Sovereign Hospitality Holdings has management agreements in place with a number of well regarded hotel management companies including Four Seasons Hotels & Resorts, InterContinental Hotels Group, Hyatt International, Rotana Hotels and Resorts, Starwood Hotels and Resorts and Six Senses Spa. The company continually seeks to form this type of long term strategic alliance which extends Sovereign Hospitality Holdings’ global reach across a range of markets and products. Recent developments in the last month include the signing of a management agreement with Hyatt International for the 100-room Hyatt Regency Oubaai, due to open in George, on South Africa’s Garden Route, in early 2010. Sovereign Hospitality Holdings has also recently signed an agreement with InterContinental Hotels Group, to develop a 370 room InterContinental Hotel in the heart of Damascus, Syria, due for completion in 2010. Under the M.A. Kharafi Group, the land will be developed and the city’s only integrated mixed use development created, which will include an InterContinental Hotel, shopping mall, cinema complex, office space, world-class conference centre, meeting rooms, ballrooms, specialty shops, health club and spa. In addition Sovereign Hospitality Holdings signed a further agreement with InterContinental Hotels Group to develop a site in Dakar, Senegal on the west coast of Africa. The M.A. Kharafi Group will invest in excess of US$250million in the development of a life-style residential estate, including an InterContinental Hotel which is expected to be completed in 2010. The site overlooks the Atlantic Ocean and when completed the estate will offer 250 rooms, restaurants, conference centre, business centre, retail space, spa, swimming pools and ocean swimming platform. Mohamed Fahmy, Chief Executive of Sovereign Hospitality Holdings commented: “Our objective, with the support of the Kharafi Group, is to expand through strategic acquisitions in Thailand and worldwide. We have a successful track record and a longterm approach to foster strategic relationships with partners to deliver solid returns through high yield opportunities in both emerging and established markets” For further information please contact: Buchanan Communications For Sovereign Hospitality Holdings +44 (0)20 7466 5000 Tim Thompson Nicola Cronk Christian Goodbody Notes to Editors For further detail on Sovereign Hospitality Holdings’ current hospitality interests, please see below (all are fully owned unless indicated). Egypt Albania Coral Beach Rotana Resort, Montazah, Sharm El Sheikh Sheraton Tirana Hotel Coral Beach Rotana Resort, Tiran, Sharm El Sheikh Chateau Linza Resort, Tirana Coral Beach Rotana Resort, Hurghada Mali Robit Resort, Golem Marina Lodge at Port Ghalib, Marsa Alam Butrinti Hotel, Saranda The Palace at Port Ghalib, Marsa Alam The Gambia Sahara Sands at Port Ghalib, Marsa Alam Sheraton Gambia Hotel, Resort & Spa Banjul Sahara Oasis at Port Ghalib, Marsa Alam The Kairaba Beach Hotel, Banjul Coral Beach Al Arish Lebanon South Africa Four Points by Sheraton, Bhamdoun Sheraton Pretoria Hotel Four Seasons Hotel, Beirut (1) Lombardy Estate, Pretoria Mauritania Hyatt Regency Oubaai George (2) 5 star Hotel Project, Nouakchott (2) Syria Ethiopia Bloudan Grand Hotel Novotel, Addis Ababa (2) Sheraton Aleppo Hotel (1) Ibis, Addis Ababa (2) Four Season Hotel, Damascus (2) Libya InterContinental Hotel, Damascus (2) Holiday Inn, Tripoli (2) Senegal InterContinental, Dakar (2) 1. Partnership 2. Planned / Under development About M.A. Kharafi Group Mohammed Abdulmohsin Al-Kharafi & Sons Company (M.A. Kharafi Group) is a private Kuwaiti based group with diverse interests and activities worldwide. Established as a trading company more than 100 years ago, it has since developed into a large multi-national company principally covering construction, manufacturing, IT, Aviation, Fast Food franchises, Agriculture, Real Estate and Hotels. From 1956 with the advent of the construction boom, due to build-up of oil wealth in the region, Kharafi’s Construction Division quickly established a dominant presence, expanding in response to the demands of a rapidly growing nation. It today presents its clients with an unrivalled fully integrated offering, and is able to cope with virtually any type of civil engineering or construction project, having worked in some 25 different countries alongside some of the world’s foremost contractors and consultants. A Grade ‘A’ International Contractor, the M.A. Kharafi Group has undertaken projects in the G.C.C., Africa, the Caribbean, Asia and Eastern Europe and has permanent branches located in the GCC, MENA, Africa and Europe. In addition to its principal areas of activity the M.A. Kharafi Group also owns Americana, the largest food company in the Middle East, an airline, and investments that include Kuwait’s leading financial institutions and other companies listed on the stock exchange. With an annual turnover of over US$4 Billion the M.A. Kharafi Group now operates in more than 25 countries and has more than 100,000 employees worldwide.