MaMaison Residence Belgicka wins "environmentally- friendly service" award
MaMaison Residence Belgicka, a part of the MaMaison Hotels & Apartments portfolio, is pleased to announce that it has been awarded the “Environmentally-Friendly Service” Certificates Award, by RNDr. Martin Bursik, Czech Minister of the Environment. The prestigious award ceremony took place under the auspices of the Ministry of the Environment earlier this summer in Národní dům na Vinohradech. Eva Šibřinová, General Manager of MaMaison Residence Belgicka and Han C. A. Brouwers, COO of MaMaison Hotels & Apartments were on hand to receive the award.
The 2006 Minister’s Prize(s) were awarded by RNDr. Martin Bursik, Czech Minister of the Environment. New eco-label certificates were awarded to companies and their products. The ‘Environmentally-Friendly Service’ certificate was awarded to three accommodation facilities. Hotels and campsites were the first group of services for which the requirements and criteria were set up by the European Commission. They have to comply with specific criteria in order to receive the European eco-label certificate. Nowadays, there are 89 eco-labeled hotels and 22 campsites abroad, specifically in Italy, Austria and Germany. The same criteria apply to the Czech eco-label.
Hospitality service providers are awarded the Environmentally-Friendly Service Certificates only after having fulfilled a number of criteria to a satisfactory level. The criteria are divided into 6 major sections: Energy, Water, Waste, Detergents & Disinfectants, Other Services and Management. There are, in total, 84 areas on which candidates can win points towards eco-proficiency. An example of one such area is as follows:
- At least 22% of the electricity shall come from renewable energy sources, as defined in Directive 2001/77/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 27 September 2001 on the promotion of electricity produced from renewable energy sources in the internal electricity market. etc
“We have worked very hard in the last year fine-tuning services and processes at MaMaison Residence Belgicka to make sure it is directly in-line with pan-European standards. Crucially, we rely on our guests’ help to maintain the programmes we put in place. Over all bathroom sinks, for instance, we have placed notices asking to save water whenever possible. We also urge guests to sort their rubbish and to re-use towels if they can. This sort of consideration for the environment doesn’t detract from guests’ experience of Belgicka or Prague, rather we receive comments on how pleasant it is to stay in a top-class residence which is doing its bit for a brighter future. I really am delighted to be paving the way for other hoteliers and hope to see many more ecologically-sound hotels across Central and Eastern Europe in the coming years.”
Eva Šibřinová, General Manager of MaMaison Residence Begicka
The three winners of this years’ awards were: MaMaison Residence Belgicka, Prague; The Sporthotel Zaton, Cesky Krumlov; The Oasa campsite, Stankovsky Lake.
This is the second major eco award MaMaison Residence Belgicka has been awarded in 2007. In March of this year, Belgicka was the first hotel in the Czech Republic to receive the EU Eco Flower Label, a standard administered by the European Union Eco-labelling Board (EUEB).
ENDS
Notes for editors:
MaMaison Hotels & Apartments is a brand of ORCO Property Group, operating all hospitality products. These products are the most luxurious of their kind and excel in design originality and high levels of service. Some MaMaison Hotels & Apartments properties belong to the very prestigious group, Small Luxury Hotels of the World, Hotels & Preference and Warwick International Hotels. MaMaison Hotels & Apartments is a new brand, established by the union of two hospitality divisions, MaMaison Residences and ORCO Hotels Collection. This brand currently operates the following properties in Central Europe:
Prague (Czech Republic):
- MaMaison Pachtuv Palace (www.pachtuvpalace.com)
- MaMaison Riverside Hotel (www.riversideprague.com)
- MaMaison Residence Belgicka (www.residence-belgicka.com)
Ostrava (Czech Republic):
- MaMaison Imperial Hotel (www.imperial.cz)
Bratislava (Slovakia):
- MaMaison Residence Sulekova (www.residence-sulekova.com)
Warsaw (Poland):
- MaMasion Le Regina (www.leregina.com)
- MaMaison Residence Diana (www.residencediana.com)
Bielsko-Biala (Poland)
- MaMaison Parkhotel Vienna (www.vienna.pl)
Budapest (Hungary):
- MaMaison Andrassy Hotel (www.andrassyhotel.com)
- MaMaison Residence Izabella (www.residence-izabella.com)
Moscow (Russia):
- MaMaison Pokrovka Suite Hotel (www.pokrovka-moscow.com). NOW OPEN!
Orco Property Group is a leading investor, developer and asset manager in the Central European real estate and hospitality market, currently managing assets of 1.31 billion EUR, as valued at 31/12/2006. Operating in Central Europe since 1991, Orco is a public company listed on the Euronext in Paris and on the Prague, Warsaw and Budapest Stock Exchanges. Orco Property Group’s portfolio includes, IPB Real, MaMaison Hotels & Apartments, Viterra Development, Gewerbesiedlungs-Gesellschaft mbH (GSG), Orco Real Estate, and other retail properties. Orco Property Group operates in a number of countries
including, mainly, the Czech Republic, Hungary, Poland, Russia, Croatia, Germany and Slovakia. Orco Property Group is continually analyzing investment into new territories.
Orco Property Group is also sponsor and manager of the Endurance Real Estate Fund for Central Europe, a Luxembourg–regulated, closed–end and umbrella fund with several sub-funds focused on real estate acquisitions on office and retail, residential and hospitality markets. The total subscribed capital of the first Office sub-fund represents EUR 150 million and it currently manages assets of approx. EUR 240 million. Estimated total value of the Fund’s portfolio after investment of full subscribed capital is app. EUR 500 million. The Endurance Fund is dedicated to institutional investors and focuses on acquisitions in Central European real estate markets. The second Residential sub-fund started its activities in October 2006. Its current subscribed capital amounts to EUR 100 million, the target being EUR 150-200 million. Hospitality sub-fund and Office A-class sub-fund are currently starting the subscriptions. For further information, please visit www.orcogroup.com
For further information, please, contact Best Communications Group:
CZ Darina Miklovicova, darina.miklovicova@bestcg.com, Tel: +420 257 532 030
ENG Brendan Donnellan, brendan.donnellan@bestcg.com Tel: +420 257 532 030