Draft rules envisaging that any authorised Thai casinos could have an initial licence running for 30 years have been published for the purposes of public feedback until August 18.
The document was released by that nation’s Council of State, a body under the authority of the country’s prime minister that provides advice to state entities.
According to a Bloomberg report, the licensees of any such gaming facilities would have the chance to seek renewal of the casino permit for a further 10 years.
Such gaming venues would be within what the Thai authorities term “entertainment complexes”, along with hotels, conference centres and tourism attractions.
Thailand’s incumbent prime minister, Srettha Thavisin, is on record as supporting casino legalisation for economic and taxation purposes.
The country’s House of Representatives in March backed a study by a panel of lawmakers that favoured the setting up of legalised casinos within large entertainment venues to attract tourists. Each casino resort would require at least THB100 billion (US$2.83 billion currently) in investment, as suggested in the House committee report.
Four of the six casino brands present in the Macau gaming market have expressed interest in investment in Thailand, subject to understanding more about the ground rules.
Bill Hornbuckle, chief executive and president of MGM Resorts International, parent of Macau operator MGM China Holdings Ltd, had mentioned last week on the second-quarter earnings call, that any group effort on Thailand would be directed via the Macau unit. The parent is already committed to a JPY1.27-trillion (US$8.76 billion currently) Asian casino pr0ject: MGM Osaka, which will be Japan’s first casino resort, and is due to open in 2030.
According to industry observers, five possible locations had so far been mentioned for casino resorts in Thailand. Two were in the capital, Bangkok, and there had been mention of one each in: the country’s Eastern Economic Corridor; Chiang Mai; and Phuket.
Bloomberg reported that tourism is one of Thailand’s key industries accounting for about 20 percent of total jobs.
The news outlet said foreign-visitor arrivals this year through to July were up about 34 percent year-on-year, to more than 20 million.
