The Saipan casino operation of Imperial Pacific International Holdings Ltd achieved in April rolling chip volume of about US$2.15 billion. The tally for last month was down 32.5 percent from the prior-year period, the firm indicated on Tuesday in a filing to the Hong Kong Stock Exchange.
Imperial Pacific has the right to an exclusive casino licence on Saipan, the main island of the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands. The firm is currently operating a temporary casino facility (pictured), known as Best Sunshine Live, and catering particularly to credit-based VIP play.
For the four months to April 30, the Hong Kong-listed firm reported VIP gambling rolling chip volume of US$12.37 billion.
Imperial Pacific is in the process of developing a permanent facility on Saipan, called Imperial Pacific Resort. The venue will feature 350 hotel rooms, 15 villas and more than 300 gaming tables and gaming machines.
In late April, the local regulator, the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands (CNMI) Lottery Commission, gave Imperial Pacific until August 31, 2018 to complete construction of its permanent casino on Saipan, according to local media reports. The original deadline was August 11, 2017.
The Lottery Commission also authorised Imperial Pacific to extend the length of operations at its temporary casino until August 31, 2018. Best Sunshine Live had been due to cease operation on April 30 this year.
The gaming investor had asked to extend the deadline to complete construction of its permanent casino, citing a number of issues as having caused construction delays.
