United International Group, owner and operator of Amata Hotels in Myanmar, will open five more hotels in the country, U Win Aung, group CEO of United International Group told The Myanmar Times Monday.

The company will open two new Amata hotels at Inle Lake and Pindaya in Shan State, two in the Myeik archipelago at Tanintharyi Region and one more in Hpa-an, Kayin State.

The Inle Lake hotel, with a total of 93 rooms, is scheduled to open in October this year. Funding for the hotel was provided by the International Finance Corporation (IFC) in October 22, 2016. The IFC loan of $13.5 million, which covers the Inle Lake hotel and a second hotel in Bagan, will be repaid in ten years at international-standard interest rates. 122 out of the 168-room hotel in Bagan were opened to the public since November 2017.

Meanwhile, construction of the hotels at Bo Yar Nyunt island and Bar Lar island in Myeik is also expected to receive IFC support. “The IFC is also interested in our hotel projects in Myeik archipelago as they are already supporting sustainable tourism development there. As such, they will support those projects by providing us with additional funding, which we will negotiate later,” said U Win Aung. When complete, the two Myeik hotels will have 20 and 30 rooms, respectively.

Last year, the IFC signed an agreement to support the Tanintharyi Development Committee, which operates under the Myanmar tourism industry and is chaired by local tycoon Mr Serge Pun. The committee will back the upgrading of infrastructure and development of sustainable tourism in Myeik.

Mr Pun also controls Yangon-listed First Myanmar Investments Co and Singapore-listed Yoma Strategic Holdings. Both companies recently spun off their tourism holdings into a separate entity, Memories Group, which listed on the Singapore Stock Exchange earlier this year.

Meanwhile, the two hotels in Hpa-an and Pindaya with 50 and 60 rooms, respectively, will open by January 2019 under the Awinka budget brand, which is part of the Amata stable of hotel brands. There are also plans to open Awinka hotel properties in Kalaw, Nyaung Shwe, Kawthaung, Loikaw, Pyin Oo Lwin, Dawei, Ngapali and Kyaingtone aimed mainly at local residents, according to U Win Aung.

Since conflict broke out in Rakhine State last year, business at Amata’s existing hotels Ngapali, Rakhine State, Hsipaw, Shan State as well as in Inle Lake and Bagan has shrunk by almost 25 percent.

“The impact on our business will be severely affected this year if the Rakhine fallout turns out to be worse than expected,” U Win Aung said.

By The Myanmar Times(Published: 17/01/2018)

https://www.mmtimes.com/news/united-international-group-open-five-amata-hotels-2018-19.html

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