The Primorye special economic zone in Russia could soon have a new integrated resort (IR). A press release distributed by the Primorsky Krai Development Corporation (PKDC), the entity charged with developing Primorye, Ramid Hotels & Resorts has apparently been meeting with local officials and is considering the construction of an IR that would include a golf course, and a memorandum of understanding has reportedly already been drafted. The company could potentially become the third out of South Korea to develop an IR in the economic zone. The other two are K International Inc. and Dongnam Industry Co. Ltd.
The new IR would be “at the level of recognized world entertainment centers Las Vegas, Hong Kong and Dubai.” Primorye’s governor, Oleg Kozhemyako, pointed out that officials “are ready to provide land plots,” including some in and around Vladivostok.
In addition to Ramid, K International plans on building a $300-million IR in Primorye. A recent announcement by Dongnam Industry indicated that the South Korean company was considering the development of a $30-million IR, which would also include a golf resort.
Ramid certainly isn’t short on experience. It operates a number of hotels around South Korea, including the Ramada Seoul Hotel, the Miranda Hotel Incheon and the Ramada Songdo Hotel. It also develops golf facilities in the country.
Ramid has had its eye on Primorye since meeting with officials there last year. The company’s president, Mun Ben-Uk, said at the time, “I have led a company that has been building golf clubs and hotels for 30 years. For five months we have been working on projects that we are going to implement in Primorye, we have already looked at the land plots, we have seen the project to create a residential complex in Closed City Fokino. We want to get to work as soon as possible.”
Primorye is quickly becoming a hot spot for activity. It was designed primarily as a large gambling destination and has received a lot of attention in the past year. Igor Trofimov, who heads the PKDC as its Director General, made many operators happy, and boosted interest, last October when he announced that there would not be any additional taxes levied on operators.
