An agreement was signed with one of Kazakhstan's leading real estate developers, covering Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Kyrgyzstan and Turkmenistan.

Under this cooperation agreement, Kempinski Hotels and Okan Holding have already signed a management agreement for a new five star luxury hotel in Almaty, Kazakhstan's largest city with 2.8 Mio inhabitants, opening in 2008. The Kempinski hotel will be part of a luxury complex in the exclusive Bostandík district. Kempinski is set to manage the modern 230-room hotel and serviced apartments, which will feature a conference centre with ballroom, business centre, several restaurants as well as a Spa and fitness centre. A separate office tower over 19 floors with 25,200 m2 office space is planned. The complex will also house Almaty's largest shopping mall, covering 45,000 m2 with space for some 140 upscale boutiques.

Almaty International Airport sees an important number of travellers arriving with international carriers such as Lufthansa, British Airways, KLM, Turkish Airlines, Aeroflot, Air Astana and China Southern Airlines.

Okan Holding is also planning a development in Kazakhstan's capital, Astana, opening in 2008. The futuristic complex in the Mikrorayon district features a base podium with Astana's largest shopping mall as well as an impressive business and convention centre. An office tower on 16 floors will offer 16,000 m2 of office space.

A further two towers will be managed by Kempinski. The first tower will offer exclusive private residences on all 24 floors and the second will offer these residences on the lower levels only, totalling 190 residences available for sale. The upper levels of the second tower will house an all-suite luxury hotel on the upper levels, intended for extended stay business guests. Astana International Airport is served by Lufthansa, Ukrainian Airlines, Turkish Airlines, Pulkovo Airlines and Air Arabia, with several flights daily to Almaty on Air Astana.

The largest state in Central Asia and the world's ninth largest in terms of land surface, Kazakhstan's steppes and deserts yield an abundance of mineral reserves and enormous fossil fuel resources. Economic reform and government led privatization have created a positive growth momentum for the country, which has increased foreign investment and exports since 2000.