India-based global hospitality chain, OYO Hotels & Homes has signed an MoU with the Saudi Arabian General Investment Authority (SAGIA). As part of this agreement, Oyo will invest US$1 billion in Saudi Arabia by adding luxury and upper-budget/mid-segment hotels to its chain across multiple cities in the kingdom in the coming months.
With this MoU, the Softbank-backed company marks its entry into offering luxury hospitality in the Kingdom.
Commenting on
the development, H.E. Eng. Ibrahim Al-Omar, Governor of the SAGIA said: “In
Saudi Arabia, the market fundamentals are in place for a vibrant tourism
industry, and we believe that the private sector will play a crucial role in
unlocking this potential. At SAGIA, our role is to empower and enable domestic
and international investors by identifying and developing new opportunities,
fostering partnerships and shaping regulatory reforms.”
At present, Oyo has more than 130 hotels with 6,500 exclusive keys across more
than 14 cities in the region.
Founder and CEO of OYO Hotels and Homes Ritesh Agarwal, Speaking about OYO’s
expansion plans said: “The luxury segment in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia holds
a lot of promise for us given the rapid growth of the hospitality industry over
the last few years. Our operations in the region are supported by more than 350
Saudi nationals and we are keen to generate employment opportunities for young
hospitality enthusiasts in the region. The Kingdom’s hospitality industry
offers a huge, untapped opportunity and we’ll continue to invest in it and
expanding OYO’s presence in the region,’’ added Ritesh.
Currently OYO in Saudi run by mostly of young Saudi nationals, and the company has
a plan to create jobs for more than 5,000 Saudi citizens by 2020.
OYO will also establish two OYO Skill Institutes, one in Riyadh and Jeddah to
train Saudi graduates in hotel management.
