Fairmont Hotels & Resorts has confirmed it is to manage The Savoy Hotel in London – subject to the property being sold to His Royal Highness Prince Alwaleed Bin Talal Bin Abdulaziz – and planned a multi-million dollar upgrade.

The hotel’s owner, property investment group Quinlan Private – which acquired The Savoy Group just six months ago for £750m – is currently in discussions with the Saudi billionaire and Bank of Scotland regarding the sale of its flagship property.

If it goes ahead, Fairmont is expected to assume management of The Savoy in January 2005.

“The addition of The Savoy, our first hotel in Europe, will provide the ideal platform for further expansion in Europe and position the Fairmont brand for continued international growth,” said William R. Fatt, chief executive officer of Fairmont.

“The historic significance of The Savoy, its location and clientele are a perfect complement to our current Fairmont portfolio. We look forward to working with our partners to complete the renovation programme. Current plans are to invest approximately $48m (£27m) to restore The Savoy to its pre-eminent position in London.”

The proposed sale to the prince only includes the 263-bedroom Savoy and the Simpson’s in the Strand restaurant; Quinlan will retain the ownership and management of the Savoy Group’s other assets: The Berkeley, The Connaught, Claridge’s and The Savoy Theatre.

Chair of Quinlan Private, Derek Quinlan, said: “The Savoy Group has performed exceptionally well since our acquisition and has exceeded our expectations.

“However, the potential to sell The Savoy itself presents a logical opportunity to make an immediate return on our initial investment and allow us to focus on the development of the other hotels in the group.”