Kempinski to operate hotel here

JAKARTA (JP): Kempinski, a Germany-based international hotel management firm, will operate a star-rated hotel in the prime business area of Jl. Sudirman, Central Jakarta, an executive said.

An advisor from Dusit Thani of Thailand, Louis C. Louvet, told The Jakarta Post yesterday that the planned hotel, to be constructed soon, will be located next to the MidPlaza office building on Jl. Sudirman.

"I don't know many details about the planned Kempinski hotel in Jakarta, but Kempinski AG, based in Frankfurt, is now partly owned by Dusit Thani," he said, adding that MidPlaza is currently preparing its second property construction comprising of apartments, five-star hotels and office buildings.

He said Dusit Sindhorn Co., Ltd., a joint venture between the publicly-listed Dusit Thani Ltd. and Siam Sindhorn Co., Ltd. acquired Kempinski about two weeks ago.

Through its German subsidiary Dusit Beteiligungs, Dusit Sindhorn acquired 83.27 percent of the issued shares of Kempinski from Advanta Management AG, Rolaco Holding S.A. and Gouden Akker Properties N.V., he said.

Dusit's executive director, Chanin Donavanik, told the Post earlier that his company, whose brand name is Dusit Hotels and Resorts, runs 50 hotels worldwide.

He said the Kempinski operation will complement Dusit Thani's existing hotel portfolio of luxury hotels. Kempinski operates 17 hotels worldwide.

Dusit entered Indonesia by operating a four-star hotel in Balikpapan, East Kalimantan, which was opened on Tuesday. Another Dusit hotel in Jakarta will open next year. (icn)