Starwood to Open 10 New Hotels in Africa Over Next 3 Years

Starwood, which currently has a portfolio of 38 hotels in Africa, has unveiled plans to increase this number by nearly 30%, with 10 new hotels set to open over the next three years, adding more than 4,200 guest rooms to the continent and creating thousands of local employment opportunities.

"Home to seven of the world's 10 fastest growing economies, there could not be a better time to expand our footprint in Africa," said Frits van Paasschen, President and CEO, Starwood Hotels & Resorts. "From a vastly improving infrastructure, major investments from China, rapid economic growth, rising personal incomes and a growing middle class - we are seeing exciting changes that are driving the African future and we intend to be a part of it."

Starwood presently operates five hotels in Nigeria, in Abuja, Ibom, Port Harcourt and two hotels in Lagos, under its Sheraton, Le Méridien and Four Points by Sheraton brands. By 2015, Starwood will open three additional hotels in Nigeria, one property in Benin City and two in Lagos.

"Nigeria is the most populous country in Africa and boasts the second-largest economy on the continent, presenting tremendous opportunities for the country to play a key role in our African expansion. With investor-friendly policies in place and on-going economic growth, Nigeria epitomizes the economic ascent of Africa as a development destination," said Simon Turner, President of Global Development & Acquisition, Starwood Hotels & Resorts.

Starwood is also focused on expansion in developing and established African countries such as Nigeria, Algeria, Egypt and South Africa, as well as key emerging countries including Angola, the Ivory Coast and Ghana.

As part of this strategy, Starwood is investing in development, sales and the expansion of its Starwood Preferred Guest (SPG) program in Africa. By the end of this year, Starwood will double its dedicated development team focused on growth in Africa.

By 2015, Starwood plans to have nearly 50 hotels in Africa with new hotels confirmed to open in Nigeria, Egypt, Algeria, Libya, Senegal and Mauritius. Key highlights include:

- The debut of Starwood's St. Regis Hotels & Resorts brand in the Africa/Indian Ocean region with the opening of The St. Regis Mauritius Resort & Spa, which opened earlier this month. This will be followed by the debut of the St. Regis brand in Egypt with The St. Regis Cairo, scheduled to open in 2014.

- A new hotel under The Luxury Collection brand in Lagos, marking the introduction of the brand into Nigeria. Starwood currently operates five hotels in the country with three additional hotels slated to open by 2015, making Nigeria Starwood's largest growth market on the African continent.

- Further expansion of the company's Sheraton portfolio in Africa with the opening of three new Sheraton hotels in Dakar (Senegal), Annaba (Algeria) and Tripoli (Libya).

- Three new Four Points by Sheraton including two in Nigeria and one hotel in Oran, Algeria.

- A new Le Méridien hotel in Cairo. The acquisition of Le Méridien in 2005 significantly expanded Starwood's presence in Africa.

In addition to the new hotels in the pipeline, Starwood will re-open three of its African hotels in the next 12 months: The Grand Mauritian, which will re-open next year after a major renovation; the Sheraton Cairo following a major renovation as part of Sheraton's global brand enhancement strategy; and the Four Points by Sheraton Tripoli, which closed last year due to political conflict in Libya.

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