The tallest hotel in West Africa, Intercontinental Lagos, built at a cost of N30 billion, was unveiled in Lagos yesterday. The
hotel located at Kofo Abayomi Street, Victoria Island, Lagos, Southwest
Nigeria is a 23-storey building containing 358 rooms and 37 suites and a
Presidential suite.
The Intercontinental Lagos, a subsidiary of the Intercontinental Hotel Group, IHG, is owned by the Milan Group. Chairman,
Milan Group, Ramesh Valechha said the hotel would change the landscape
of Lagos and boost the hospitality industry in the state.
He
disclosed that Memorandum of Understanding for the project was signed on
31 March, 2004 while it took two years to complete the design work
before the conceptualisation of the project began.
He stated that the Lagos State Government, Skye Bank and Wema Bank were supportive of the project.
Valechha disclosed the building of the hotel cost over N30 billion while 650 jobs were created for Nigerians.
Regional
General Manager, IHG, Africa, Karl Hala said the hotel is the leading
hotel in Nigeria, saying the group had 170 Intercontinental Hotels in 60
countries of the world.
He described the unveiling of the hotel
in Lagos as a significant milestone in the hospitality industry, adding
that the group also had 20 Intercontinental Hotels in Africa and that
the hotel was the only 5-star hotel in Nigeria.
Chief Executive
Officer, Design Group, Bayo Odunlami said it took lots of challenging
moment in the design and conceptualization of the project, saying he was
happy that the group overcame the hurdles.
