Emaar Hospitality Group has not set a timeline for the operator to be listed on the stock exchange, revealed its CEO Olivier Harnisch.
Speaking on the sidelines of Arabian Travel Market, Harnisch said: "There is no specific timeline for an IPO. We are focusing on everyday business; Emaar Properties, in the past, has had some of its divisions go to IPO - but for us, when the right time comes, it is something we will look at."
The company is growing, asserted Harnisch, who also said that many areas across the world are of interest. He commented: "We are focusing on the GCC, we are developing into China and India, the Indian Ocean, the Mediterranean, and we have about 20 key cities in Europe that we want to develop in, and in Africa."
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He continued: "We have several projects in Egypt and we are planning to enter sub-Saharan Africa but there is no specific project I can talk about now. In the next few weeks, we will hear about one hotel in this region."
Harnisch emphasised on the importance of Saudi Arabia, saying that it's one of the "key coutnries" for the operator. He added: "In Saudi Arabia we want to be in primary, secondary, and tertiary cities with all our brands. Saudi Arabia is also our biggest source market for Emaar, and second biggest source market for Dubai, so there are a lot of synergies for us. Very soon we will be able to announce more projects in that country."