Construction of new five-star hotel on Long Island-Work to start in April 2006 |30 December 2005

This was announced by Csaba Biro, the managing director of Polus Investments Seychelles Ltd, the local branch of TriGranit Development Corporation, the company promoting the project in Seychelles.

Mr Biro and the chief executive of Seychelles Investment Bureau (SIB), Joseph Nourrice, met with the press at SIB's new offices at Caravelle House in Victoria on Wednesday to give details about the project.

The developer will be investing between US $40 to US $50 million in the construction of the resort which will comprise 55 villas with 130 rooms. The resort will be managed by Shangri-La Hotels and Resorts, one of the biggest hotel chains in the world.

Shangri-La Resort and Spa Seychelles was launched in mid-December in London at a signing ceremony between Shangri-La Hotels and Resorts and TriGranit Development Corporation.

Polus Investments Seychelles has obtained a 49-year lease on the island at US $3.8 million.

The money also includes a contribution for the relocation of the Long Island Prison to Montagne Posée on Mahe. According to Mr Nourrice, the prison would have been relocated by the time construction work starts on the hotel.

The hotel development will cover some 21,000 square metres of land, around 10% of the island, and will take place on the side of the island facing Praslin.

Mr Biro said the concept of the resort is still being finalised, but the architectural design of the villas will reflect Victorian style that would blend well in the Seychelles environment. The villas will be designed by Budapest-based Fazakas Gyorgy Architects Ltd and Dubai-based Interior Motives.

In addition to the villas, there will also be a Chi-Spa, one of Shangri-La's specialities, to offer life-force based body therapy and a golf course. Among the villas there will be  superior villas and a presidential villa. 50% of the villas will have their own swimming pools.

The project will also entail the construction of a jetty or pontoon, a desalination plant and sewage treatment plant.

Given the sensitive location of the resort in the marine park, Mr Nourrice said the project would be subject to stringent environment regulations and a class one Environment Impact Assessment is to be carried out.
He said all the necessary measures would be undertaken to ensure that the development is done according to set environment norms and that the project posed no threat to the marine park.

SIB, he said, was collaborating with the Ministry of Internal Affairs, the Department of Environment, Planning Authority and the Marine Park Authority in the implementation of the project.

The project, he said, would be monitored closely throughout its construction phase until it is completed.

The resort is due to be completed by 2007.

Mr Nourrice said the resort will provide an additional 250 jobs and said that this would mean more employment opportunities for Seychellois.

Mr Biro has given his assurance that the island's environment and surrounding marine reserve would not be compromised by the construction of the resort.

He said that much emphasis would be put on consultation with local environment experts and a series of technical surveys would be carried out to ensure that the development of the hotel is in line with all regulations.

Already in the initial concept of the project, he said, certain environmental-friendly steps have been taken, for instance, to ensure that the villas are integrated in the environment to avoid as much as possible felling of trees.

"Our main aim is to preserve the natural habitat of the island as it is," Mr Biro said.
Polus Investments, he said, was proud to be associated with Shangri-La Hotels & Resorts, as it "is one of the best hotel management companies in the world."

He said the resort on Long Island would offer value for money and quality services at competitive prices.

Shangri-La, he said, was a brand name whose presence in Seychelles would only lure other investors to the country.

TriGranit, a Hungary-based company, is a well-recognised real estate developer in Central and Eastern Europe and has to date promoted the development of projects in ten European countries. The resort on Long Island will be the first it undertakes outside Europe.