Delta is opening InterContinental in Novi Beograd - Construction of a five-star hotel starts in September 2015

(Future "InterContinental" in Belgrade) Belgrade will have its "InterContinental"again. Delta company is planning construction of the new five-star hotel in Novi Beograd and as Zivorad Vasic said for eKapija, GM at Hoteli i poslovni prostor "Delta Real Estate" the construction could start in September.

"InterContinental Beograd" will be built in block 20, between the building of "Delta Holding" and "Hyatt". It will have 220 rooms, a luxurious spa center, a large banquet hall and a few more smaller conference halls.

-We made fascinating hotel project. VPs at "InterContinental Hotels Group" are coming next Monday to Belgrade. "Pricewaterhouse Coopers" has been developing the feasibility study and they made a business plan already. We are waiting for the construction permit which is at the moment the only problem but I hope that it will be solved in the next month so that we would make architectural project and release tender. If we get permits in expected period, the works could start in September already and the hotel completion would take a year to year and a half.

Together with the land and construction, the estimation of Vasic is that the project will reach the value of EUR 40 m.

-We are on good terms with city authorities structure and I sincerely believe that we will get permits and start construction in the planned period. With the project implementation, Belgrade will get another world hotel brand of the highest category and 170-180 new people would be employed.

When asked whether there is a threat that the new hotel will drag a part of guests from Crown Plaza which also operates within "InterContinental Hotels Group", and has the biggest accommodation capacity in the region with 420 rooms, Vasic says they will make synergy – hotels will differ in prices, look, etc.

-"InterContinental" will have rooms on 38-40 m2 not 28, an attractive spa center, a large banquet hall which can receive 400 people. We want to attract embassies, we will organize eminent weddings, we will target people who want to spend money. Apart from that, for competitions organized we often need two hotels - one to accommodate judges, the other one to accommodate completion participants , executives in one, CEO managers in the second one.

Investments in the new hotel is only a part of investments of "Delta Holding". Apart from the new hotel, the company is planning to build in Novi Beograd a new office building and construction permit is awaited for the shopping center in Autokomanda. They are investing in th region as well so construction the hotel in Ljubljana has been recently announced.

Vasic believes that a luxurious hotel in Ljubljana will open in December 2016 or January 2017. The investment value will be known when tender process ends and the first man of "Delta Real Estate" expects they will total EUR 30 m.

Ivana Bezarevic