Egypt’s Orascom Ready To Invest 1.1 Bln Euro in Resort Development Project in Montenegro – Montenegrin Govt

Orascom consortium, comprising Orascom Hotels & Development and Orascom Hotels Holding, has placed the sole bid to acquire a 90% stake in state-owned Lustica Development company which operates an area of some seven million square metres on the Lustica peninsula, opposite the major Adriatic resorts of Herceg Novi, Tivat and Kotor. The government is seeking a strategic partner to develop the area under a public private partnership (PPP) deal.

“For the duration of the project, Orascom will invest in Lustica project and in Montenegro some 1.1 billion euro, as the project will create some 10,000 jobs, 9,000 of which in the hotel business,” Montenegro's government said in a statement late on Friday without giving a timeframe.

The project envisages 235 million euro revenue from activities other than the provision of accommodation, the statement added.

The development of the all-year resort will include the construction of hotels with 3,320 beds, a golf course, three yacht ports, a school, a hospital, restaurants, bars and shops.

Orascom Hotels and Development (OHD), part of Orascom Group, is active in designing, developing, and marketing force of real estate projects in Egypt, Oman, Switzerland, Morocco, the U.A.E., Mauritius and Jordan.

Montenegro, whose economy is highly dependent on tourism, plans to raise tourism revenue by 15% to 550 million euro this year. The World Travel and Tourism Council has put Montenegro among its top holiday destinations, projecting that the country’s tourism industry will grow at over 8.0% annually over the next eight years.

($ = 0.7492 euro)