Genting SkyWorlds, the new outdoor theme park at Malaysian casino complex Resorts World Genting, might now only open in December, linked to a possible three-month closure of the property amid the Covid-19 pandemic, says a Monday note from Maybank Investment Bank Bhd.
As a result, the investment bank is reducing its forecast for 2021 visitor numbers at the resort (pictured) to 8.5 million, from 12 million. The theme park was touted as a likely major draw for tourists.
Maybank is also widening its figure for the expected 2021 core net loss for the resort’s promoter, Genting Malaysia Bhd, by 76 percent, to MYR676 million (US$164.1 million).
But Maybank analyst Samuel Yin Shao Yang stated such 2021 net loss should “only be half that of financial year 2020,” which registered a net loss of almost MYR1.45 billion.
Last month, Genting Malaysia said it was working towards” the completion of the outdoor theme park “in the third quarter of 2021”.
“We gather that Resorts World Genting will be shut for three months this time, and Genting SkyWorlds will only open in December 2021 to coincide with school holidays,” in Malaysia, running from December 10 to December 31, said the memo from Mr Yin.
Due to what Maybank called a “recent surge” in new Covid-19 cases in Malaysia; Resorts World Genting, located outside the country’s capital Kuala Lumpur, was shut completely for the time being, on May 31. The gaming operation had been temporarily closed a week earlier, on May 24.
“Resorts World Genting was shut for three months from 18 March to 18 June 2020, and shut again for 25 days from 22 January to 15 February 2021,” noted Mr Yin.
Genting Malaysia also has operations in the United States, the Bahamas, the United Kingdom, and Egypt. But Maybank said approximately 80 percent of group earnings were generated by the Malaysian casino complex.
