Hong Kong-listed Imperial Pacific International Holdings Ltd on Thursday posted a net loss of HKD168.8 million (US$21.8 million) for the first half of 2015, compared to HKD19.6 million a year ago.
The company said its revenue for the period fell 52.9 percent year-on-year to HKD138.2 million, while its administrative expenses rose by about 400 percent to HKD167.9 million.
Imperial Pacific holds a casino licence for the Pacific island of Saipan and is also an investor in the profit stream of Macau junket firm Hengsheng Group, also known as Heng Sheng Group.
Imperial Pacific said it had recognised an impairment loss regarding its investment in Hengsheng. It reported an accrued revenue of approximately HKD6,000 from the sharing of profit stream from the Macau gaming business in the six months to June 30, with a segment loss of about HKD3 million for the period. That compares to a segment profit of HKD11.8 million in the prior-year period.
“As rolling turnover generated during the period continued to drop, the expected cash inflow from this business segment decreased and therefore an impairment loss of approximately HKD3,000,000 in respect of intangible asset was recognised,” Imperial Pacific said.
Casino gross gaming revenue (GGR) in Macau for the first six months of 2015 stood 37.0 percent lower than in the same period in 2014, with VIP baccarat GGR falling 42.2 percent year-on-year in the second quarter.
Pursuant to the investment in Hengsheng, the vendor deposited HKD376 million as a profit guarantee to Imperial Pacific for the period from January 1, 2015 to December 31, 2029. The applicable guaranteed profit share for the period until December 31, 2017 is HKD72 million, Imperial Pacific said.
“Such proceeds have been used for developing the integrated resort business on the Island of Saipan,” it added.
Imperial Pacific confirmed in Thursday’s filing that it had a soft opening on July 26 – outside of the reporting period – of its “temporary casino” on Saipan, which has started to generate gaming revenue.
The company also started site construction in July for two hotels, with a total of 254 rooms, and a casino on Saipan. It said it expects construction work to be “fully complete within 16 months”.
Imperial Pacific said this business segment was in the development stage in the first half of 2015, recording a loss of approximately HKD127.6 million, compared to HKD14 million a year earlier.
In September last year, Imperial Pacific pledged to spend as much as US$7 billion on a casino resort on Saipan.
