Skopje, Macedonia: An international group from Dubai has bought a majority stake in the Macedonian ski resort of Kozuf for an initial investment of 200 million euros (Dh1 billion), the resorts programme director said Monday at a press conference.
The new investors, MG Global Group from Dubai, are planning a complete overhaul of the resort hoping to turn it into one of the biggest ski centres in the region with new hotels and apartments to be built by the end of March next year.
The project is being managed by the Canadian firm Select Contract which specialises in designing, building and operating leisure centres.
"We hope that tourism will develop in this area as there is a very good environment, mountains for skiing, and nearby is the Dojran lake and the sea coast in neighbouring Greece," the resort's programme director Pero Tanevski said.
Ben Barker, development manager of Select Contract company, said that they see huge potential in the region's tourist sector, which will be "of great importance both on the local and international level."
"We believe that the Kozuf Ski Resort will be one of the largest ski centres in the region and wider, and we hope that the idea will be realised as soon as possible with the support of the local self-government and competent institutions," Barker told the Macedonian International News Agency.
Support
The executive manager of Kozuf Ski Resort, Angel Nakov, said that "with the support of the local self-government and the country's government the entrance of such a serious company will contribute to the revival of tourism in Macedonia."
He added that the owner will prepare the entire documentation. Apartments, hotels, a water park, sports terrains, a spa centre and two cable railways will be constructed by the end of March 2011, Nakov said.
Kozuf is strategically located 60 kilometres from the Greek coast. At the moment it is a very small ski resort with just three ski lifts but it does have a vertical descent of 573 metres and covers a large area with 12 pistes.
