JEDDAH, 21 May 2008 — Prince Alwaleed bin Talal, chairman of Kingdom Holding Company (KHC), received a Japanese delegation at his office in Riyadh on Sunday. The delegation was headed by Hiroshi Okuda, special envoy of the prime minister of Japan, and included Shigeru Nakamura, Japanese ambassador to Saudi Arabia.

The discussions during the meeting covered social and economic issues as well as possibilities of investment in Japan. Prince Alwaleed welcomed the ideas for investment projects in Japan that would further strengthen the economies of Saudi Arabia and Japan.

The meeting also focused on Prince Alwaleed’s current investments in Japan through KHC that include Four Seasons Hotel Tokyo at Chinzan-so, Four Seasons Hotel Tokyo at Marunouchi, Swissotel Nankai Osaka, Citigroup (22 branches and 8 mini branches throughout Japan), Tokyo Disneyland, Pepsi Co. and News Corporation.

Prince Alwaleed commended the role of Japan in maintaining the positive relations between the two countries. He also said that Japan was a pioneer of technological innovation and car manufacture.

Fairmont Sale Completed

In another development, Kingdom Holding Company (KHC) has announced that it has completed the sale of the Fairmont New Orleans Hotel with proceeds valued at SR108 million going to KHC.

P.J. Shoucair, executive director for international investments at KHC, commented: “The sale of this hotel is in line with KHC’s strategy to continue to realize value from hotel assets either through a sale or aggressive operational and financial management across KHC’s hotel portfolio.”

The Fairmont New Orleans is a 615 guestroom hotel with an additional 85 suites. The hotel was originally built in 1893 near the French Quarter. Recently, KHC announced the completion of the Monte Carlo Hotel in Monaco with proceeds valued at SR150 million going to KHC.