GGRAsia – LET Group, buyer amend deal for Hokkaido land

LET Group, buyer amend deal for Hokkaido land

Sep 26, 2023 Newsdesk Latest News, Rest of Asia, Top of the deck

Hong Kong-listed LET Group Holdings Ltd, an investor in Asia-Pacific region casino projects, says it has amended a deal with the buyer regarding the sale of a plot of land in Hokkaido, Japan.

In May, LET Group said that one of its units had agreed to sell the Hokkaido plot of land for a total consideration of US$27.0 million. The subsidiary received from the current suitor on September 20 a third deposit payment, in the amount of US$2.3 million, said LET Group in a Monday filing.

Under the amended agreement, if the deal is not completed “on or prior to 2 October 2023”, the price will increase to US$27.6 million, stated the firm. Subject to satisfaction of some conditions, the closing date could be extended to October 31, it added.

The land, with a total area of 220,194 square metres (2.37 million sq. feet) is close to Mount Yotei, a popular skiing and outdoor-activities location on Japan’s northernmost main island Hokkaido (pictured). The group originally intended to develop on the land a non-gaming ski resort, featuring 50 villas, 20 townhouses and a hotel with over 40 rooms.

The original buyer was a Singapore-incorporated firm, Nauticawt Energy Pte Ltd, controlled by Malaysian investor Cheah Meng Fui. In July, LET Group said that Nauticawt Energy “assigned, transferred and delivered” to ST Moritz Group Inc “all its contractual position, rights, title, obligations and interest in, to and under” the deal for the Hokkaido land.

The new buyer is a company incorporated in the British Virgin Islands, and is principally engaged in investment holding. It was described in a previous filing as being wholly owned by Raymond Shao Leong Yap, as a nominee of the ultimate beneficial owner of the original buyer.

LET Group has been implementing what it termed a “cost-cutting programme”, including the sale of some non-core businesses. The net proceeds from the Hokkaido land deal were to be used to: repay the group’s outstanding liabilities; for business development; and general working capital, it said in a previous filing.

LET Group reported a profit for the six months to June 30, at HKD450.6 million (US$57.5-million), compared to a HKD387.1-million loss in the prior-year period.

The company has had, in the course of its business, interest in a number of casino projects in the Asia-Pacific region.

It is the indirect controller of Philippine Stock Exchange-listed Suntrust Resort Holdings Inc, the developer of a casino hotel scheme at Westside City in the Philippine capital Manila.

Suntrust Resort reaffirmed in August a plan to launch operations at the property in the “fourth quarter of 2024”.

LET Group also controls Hong Kong-listed Summit Ascent Holdings Ltd, which majority owns the Tigre de Cristal casino resort near Vladivostok in the Russian Far East.