UAE: UAE’s Al Habtoor Plans $544m Hotel Investments

The UAE-based Al Habtoor Group says it has allocated AED 2 billion ($544m) to be spent in international hospitality acquisitions in 2016.

The announcement came as the conglomerate reported strong growth across its major divisions, recording a revenue increase of 16% over the first nine months of 2015 compared to the same period a year earlier.

The value of the company’s investments and expansion initiatives in Dubai currently stand at AED12.5 billion ($3.4bn), it said in a statement.

Al Habtoor Group’s hotels division saw revenue increase by 23% in the first three quarters of the year. The firm’s local assets include The Waldorf Astoria Dubai Palm Jumeirah and The Habtoor Grand Beach Resort & Spa.

In addition, the group recently opened the St. Regis Dubai at its Al Habtoor City development, which will see two other five star hotels open early next year: The W Dubai – Al Habtoor City and The Westin Dubai, Al Habtoor City.

Other properties in the pipeline include The Al Habtoor Polo Resort & Club in Dubailand, the centrepiece of which will be a St. Regis Hotel. The resort, which will be surrounded by 156 luxury villas, is due to open at the end of 2016.

Another development under construction is the new Metropolitan Hotel on Sheikh Zayed Road.

In terms of international ventures, the Al Habtoor Group has partnered with The Ritz-Carlton for a property in the Elizabeth Park Hotel Budapest. The conglomerate also owns the InterContinental Budapest Hotel, located on the Danube River.

Moreover, the Dubai-based group has two hotels in Lebanon: The Hilton Beirut Habtoor Grand and The Hilton Beirut Metropolitan Palace. Last year, the firm entered the US hospitality market for the first time, buying The President Abraham Lincoln Springfield, a DoubleTree by Hilton Hotel.

“I am eying further investments abroad,” chairman Khalaf Ahmad Al Habtoor said. “I am always considering international growth, and looking for sound investments abroad. My focus is on Europe and the United States.”

Occupancy rates at the company's Dubai hotels saw above average capacity for much of the year, and revenue at all the international properties recorded double-digit growth in the first nine months of the year, the chairman said.

“We are looking forward to 2016. We have ambitious plans for the future, however, it is not time to be complacent. We are an active player across many sectors and play a key role in the UAE economy. Therefore we need to ensure we have the right teams in place to reach our full potential.”