Accor plans merger with Orbis, hotels to be renamed

French hotel group Accor announced yesterday that it plans to merge its Polish business with that of its partner Orbis by mid-2002. Neither of the companies would disclose the amount of money involved in the deal, although Accor said it did expect to receive Orbis shares and cash. Accor, which has stated that it has no intention of raising its holding in its Polish partner to above 50%, already holds 20% of Orbis shares, and the deal, once completed, would see it increase its stake to 40%. The French group says it plans to add its 13 existing and planned hotels to Orbis's network to strengthen the latter's position on the East European market, at the same time as cutting its operating costs. At present, 29 Orbis hotels have been incorporated into Accor's International hotel network and reservation system. The deal must be approved by the Orbis general shareholders' meeting scheduled for early next year. In related news, Orbis deputy chief executive Krzysztof Gerula announced that by the end of 2004, Orbis will have complete d the re-naming of almost half of its nationwide network of hotels, giving them the Accor titles of Ibis, Mercure, Novotel and Sofitel. The change is aimed at attracting international customers. (Prawo i Gospodarka, p. 9) J.K.