Accor Middle East has recently inked a strategic alliance with the Alesayi Group in Saudi Arabia.

　　Accor Middle East has recently inked a strategic alliance with the Alesayi Group in Saudi Arabia. The partnership will see development of a minimum of 10 new hotel properties by 2018 across the Kingdom. The agreement was signed late October 2013 in Paris between Accor Group chairman and CEO, Sebastien Bazin and Alesayi Group president and CEO, Sheikh Mohammed Omar Kassem Alesayi.

　　Following this agreement, a management contract was signed in Jeddah for the development of the first three ibis hotels across key cities of Riyadh and Jeddah. Ibis Jeddah two hotels with 200 and 300 rooms respectively and Ibis Riyadh hotel will be 194 rooms.

　　Sheikh Mohammed Omar Kassem Alesayi, group president & CEO said: “This alliance is aligned with our Group’s strategy to invest in the Kingdom.”

　　Christophe Landais, managing director for Accor Middle East said: “The Middle East, and specifically Saudi Arabia, is a prominent market for the Accor’s growth which will be driven with support of strategic partnerships with major hotel investors. Alesayi Group shares our vision and ambition to develop in the Kingdom a hotel network.”

　　The second property – ibis Yanbu – is set to open by first quarter of 2014. Accor aims to strengthen its position in the Kingdom with a future development target of 30 to 40 ibis properties.