The two companies will contribute equally to a R250-million refurbishment of the property."This deal will secure Sun International's position in South Africa's premier business node, and will complement the Table Bay Hotel in Cape Town, our other major urban hotel," says acting chief executive Garth Collins. "It is a prime location given its close proximity to the Johannesburg Stock Exchange, the Sandton Convention Centre, the commercial and retail district and the Gautrain.

"We are not presently represented in Sandton and this venture offers the group relatively short term access to this key market.

"Importantly, the hotel will act as a valuable stop-over point for our inbound visitors who arrive from abroad en route to our properties around the country, especially Sun City, Cape Town and Livingstone. The Grayston is ideally suited to this purpose and provides a good added facility for our foreign guests.

"The hotel is currently in need of a revamp and to this end we will undertake a major refurbishment of its 346-rooms and public areas.

"The hotel will close at the end of November when the current lease expires and the refurbishment will commence in January 2012 with the aim of launching the new hotel as a four star plus under the Sun International brand early in 2013."

The Grayston Hotel has always been a preferred destination for business travellers due to its location, its conference facilities, business service amenities and significant landscaped gardens that surround the hotel.

With a market capitalisation of approximately US$1.4-billion, Sun International operates 27 hotels and 22 casinos, including 13 of the 36 casinos currently operating in South Africa. It is the leading casino operator in the southern hemisphere and enjoys a 41% share of the South African casino market.

Sun International owns and operates tourism resorts, luxury hotels and urban entertainment operations in eight countries, including South Africa, Zambia, Nigeria, Botswana, Namibia, Lesotho, Swaziland and Chile. More than half of this portfolio has been developed in the last 15 years, with new projects having been launched in West Africa and South America.

Since 1994, the group has made significant investments in new infrastructure as part of its development programme to take advantage of the expected improvement in the performance and prospects of southern Africa's tourism and leisure industries.

Source: www.hotelandrestaurant.co.za