MGM Osaka to open 1H2030, break ground maybe still 2023
U.S.-based casino operator MGM Resorts International says it should only be able to open its integrated resort (IR) in Osaka – Japan’s first and, so far, only approved casino property – in the first half of 2030. The company expects to break ground on the project still this year, according to management.
MGM Osaka
“Probably it will open first quarter, second quarter of 2030,” said on Monday Bill Hornbuckle, chief executive and president of MGM Resorts. That contrasted with a previously-stated aspiration to open the gaming complex by 2029. He added that the firm and its Japanese partner Orix Corp needed to complete land lease and other agreements with the Osaka authorities before moving ahead with the project.
“Presuming this or next quarter those [deals] will get done… we are looking to break ground either late this year or first part of next year,” stated Mr Hornbuckle. “We look forward to getting started on this major development, to increase our global reach and fulfil our strategy to increase our geographic diversification.”
He was speaking during an investor conference call after the announcement of the first-quarter results of MGM Resorts, the parent of Macau-based casino operator MGM China Holdings Ltd.
Japan’s central government approved last month the so-called IR District Development Plan of Osaka in relation to a tourism complex with casino, to be developed by a consortium including MGM Resorts and Orix. The Osaka facility will be at Yumeshima, an artificial island in Osaka Bay, that will host the World Expo 2025.
MGM Resorts has described its casino resort complex as a “US$10 billion” project. In Monday’s conference call, the firm’s management confirmed it planned to resort to bank financing to help pay for construction.
Last month, the newly re-elected governor of Osaka prefecture, Hirofumi Yoshimura, reaffirmed Osaka’s aim of “targeting to open an IR in 2029″. But MGM Resorts had already signalled in February that could be hard to achieve.
Sursa: ggrasia.com
