Over the next four years, a chain of 15 to 20 hotels under the Park Plaza brand will open - the hotels are either new buildings or developments of existing properties.

Park Plaza Hotels Limited has entered into an agreement with Ferens Management Limited (Ferens), owned by Renova StroyGroup (RSG), a leading Russian privately-owned diversified business group to operate up to 20 new hotels (with a total of approximately 3,500 to 4,000 rooms) in Russia under 20-year management contracts.

Jones Lang LaSalle Hotels exclusively advised Ferens and its partners on operator selection and management contract negotiations as part of their initiated hotel development program in Russia.

Over the next four years, Ferens intends to establish a chain of 15 to 20 hotels under the Park Plaza brand. The hotels will be either new buildings or developments of existing properties.

The hotels will be located in major Russian cities, with populations of over 500,000, and are intended to include several hotels in both Moscow and St. Petersburg, the principal destinations for business travellers in Russia. The build-out and development of the hotels is expected to be completed by the end of 2012.

Evgeny Bezel, Senior Vice President, Jones Lang LaSalle Hotels Moscow, comments:

"Tourism demand for major cities in Russia has increased phenomenally and there is clearly a shortage of modern hotels in the mid-to-upscale segment. Apart from Moscow and St. Petersburg, there are only a few regional cities in Russia which offer hotels under international management, and there is a limited number of cities which offer accommodation managed by national operators. Vast majority of regional cities lack modern standard hotels under professional operations at all, so the expansion of Park Plaza is timely and will positively impact the hotel landscape."