Construction of a Hyatt-branded Hotel at Providence, East Bank Demerara is set to commence within the next three months, SIR Investments, the Trinidad and Tobago-based developer says.
The company, in response to questions from this newspaper, said that plans and applications for the necessary permits are far advanced and once approved by state bodies, construction will commence.
“More particularly, SIR investments has retained all project managers, architects and other supporting firms for design and planning phase. All agreements have been executed with Hyatt International and all drawings and plans are being finalised for final approval with the relevant state authority,” the developers told Stabroek News.
It was further related that all necessary agreements with the Guyana Office for Investment (G-Invest) have been completed pending final approvals and plan. The developers stated that they are in active discussions with three contractors at this time and will soon make a selection for the construction of the US$32.2M four star hotel. The 125-room hotel is expected generate hundreds of employment opportunities. During the construction phase over 300 workers will be required for the project which is likely to last about 20 months. In the start-up of the hotel operations, close to 100 persons will be needed for full-time positions.
Hyatt is on a list of seven hotels expected to begin construction this year as government advances its plan to create 2000 rooms in the accommodation sector. The hotels to be constructed this year along with the Hyatt are: Four Points under Marriott at New Access Road, Houston with 150 rooms; AC Marriott at Ogle with 150 rooms; Pasha Global at Liliendaal with 200 rooms; Best Western to be located at Liliendaal Seafront with 120 rooms; along with Kings Hotel with 40 rooms and Herdmanston Lodge with 60 rooms, both located in Georgetown. Three other hotels, Aiden Hotel with 150 rooms and Sleepin Hotel on Brickdam with 195 rooms located also in the city and Marriott Courtyard at the Cheddi Jagan International Airport, Timehri are already in the construction phase. The Aiden, Sleepin, Marriott Courtyard, and Four Points under Marriott Hotels are scheduled to be completed between March and December 2023, while the other hotels will be completed between March and September 2024. The Hyatt Hotel is expected to be constructed in 20 months.
Chairman of SIR Investment Guyana, Imtiaz Ahamad, said his company’s decision to enter Guyana is one that they had been looking at for some time. He explained that while they wanted to enter the market they were looking to do so with their signature automobile business, however, at the same time they were attracted to the market by government’s call for construction of hotels and sought to cash in. “We have been involved in the automobile business for 70 odd years, we command a strong market presence [in Trinidad]. Obviously we cannot sit back, we needed to further diversify and look for opportunities after feasibility and analysis…late last year Go-Invest had a Request for Expression of Interest and we picked it up and we ran with it,” he said before pointing out that within months they were able to arrive at a deal and acquire a suitable location. The 125-room, 4-star hotel, its developers say, is expected to become operational by 2024, targeting “Guyana’s middle to upper class corporate clientele and value-conscious business and leisure travelers”. Amenities include different guest rooms options, disability outfitted rooms, restaurant and bar, meeting rooms, social lounge, fitness centre, pools, internet and communication links, room service and guest laundry and spacious parking spaces.
Other brands expected to be constructed here are the Sheraton, The Element, Delta Marriott, the H-Tower Luxury Hotel, the Marriott Courtyard, the Hyatt Hotel, the Radisson Blu and the Hilton Hotel, among others.
While it is widely accepted that Guyana’s oil and gas industry will see a significant increase in the demand for hotel rooms, analysts have questioned whether feasibility studies were undertaken by each of the new developments to determine at what point market saturation could occur.
