Jumeirah has been selected to create one of the world's most luxurious hotels in a glass tower, combining spectacular residential apartments and luxury hotel accommodation, next to Thames in Southwark.

On Thursday 21st September, Jumeirah signed an agreement with Beetham Organization to create The Jumeirah Hotel at 51 storey Beetham Tower, the new £600 million slender curved glass landmark for London, about to be built on London's South Riverbank at the junction of Blackfriars Bridge and Blackfriars Road, subject to planning permission. The tower will stand 180 metres high, with the hotel's planned observation deck sitting 45 meters higher that the famed London Eye. In London Jumeirah currently manages Jumeirah Carlton Tower and Jumeirah Lowndes Hotel.

In what will be a major boost for tourism in London and for Southwark and the South Bank as a new focus for visitors to the capital, The Jumeirah Hotel will be sited in the lower half of Beetham Tower and will have 261 spacious rooms and suites, a spectacular ballroom that will accommodate large-scale conference and banqueting events catering for up to 800 people, plus a number of smaller meeting venues.

The hotel will have a variety of restaurants and bars and a state of the art spa, health and leisure facility that will be located on 26th and 27th floors of the hotel, with stunning views across the capital. The hotel will open in 2011, and is expected to be a major attraction for visitors to the 2012 Olympics.

Gerald Lawless, Chief Executive Officer of Jumeirah Group, said: "Jumeirah's brand essence is expressed in two words – ‘Stay Different' – and this tremendous project enables us to work with the developers to plan for and ultimately deliver what will be one of the world's most unique luxury hospitality experiences."

The residential apartments and penthouses, above the hotel, will be offered the opportunity to avail of services offered by the luxury Jumeirah hotel. There will be onsite provision for 32 affordable homes in an adjacent building.

The new tower, designed by award-winning Ian Simpson Architects, will also have public facilities, including a new plaza wrapping round the base of the tower with cafes and restaurants and access via an express elevator to a five-storey high public viewing gallery at the top of the tower.

Hugh Frost, chairman of Beetham Organization, said: "The Jumeirah Hotel at Beetham Tower will provide unmatched luxury for visitors to London and a natural synergy with our plans for the residential apartments at Beetham Tower. This will be a major new landmark and attraction for London."