No announcement has been made regarding the timing for any new application round whereby Japanese local governments could seek the right to host an integrated resort (IR) with casino.
That is according to a Tuesday statement by the Nagasaki prefectural government, which says it is still keen on hosting a casino resort, but is concerned about a “high hurdle” for success.
The prefecture had made a bid in the initial round, which concluded in December 2023, but its proposal was not approved by the national authorities.
Nagasaki’s commentary on a possible further round of applications came during a meeting of the prefectural assembly’s general affairs committee, according to information reviewed by GGRAsia’s Japan correspondent.
The session included a question-and-answer element regarding a “questionnaire” the Nagasaki authorities had received in November, from the Japan Tourism Agency regarding the country’s policy of having IRs.
The formula of sending out an initial questionnaire to all 47 Japanese prefectures and 20 ordinance-designated cities deemed capable of hosting an IR, had been applied prior to the first round of applications.
The tourism agency – under the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism – had been the coordinating body for first-round applications.
According to accounts of Tuesday’s meeting in the Nagasaki prefectural assembly, the authorities stated: “The IR questionnaire was designed for the [tourism] agency to grasp the status and interest of prefectures and ordinance-designated cities.”
The prefectural government added: “The IR questionnaire simply asked whether [a] prefecture or ordinance-designated city is interested in having an IR or not.”
The Nagasaki authorities said they submitted the questionnaire to the tourism agency stating: “We are interested in having an IR.”
Since its failed bid to host a casino complex, the prefecture has reduced the size of its IR office, which now only deals with “legal issues, information disclosure, and research,” according to GGRAsia’s Japan correspondent.
Up to three IRs were envisaged for Japan initially, but so far only MGM Osaka, a JPY1.27-trillion (US$8.38-billion currently) venture has been approved, and is being built with the aim of a 2030 launch date.
On Tuesday, the Nagasaki authorities said they were “watching” IR-related developments in Osaka and overseas jurisdictions. “Also, we are looking into how to deal with the issues which led to the non-approval of the previous IR District Development Plan,” they added.
According to them, “at this moment, there is no announcement made” by the national authorities “regarding the timing of the next round of application”.
The prefectural government however cautioned that it could not yet decided on whether it would bid again to host an IR.
“We think it is a high hurdle to make a new application with a new IR District Development Plan because it would require of the prefecture, huge costs and efforts again and the examination by the [tourism] agency [involves a] great [degree of] discretion,” it stated.
A number of commentators on Japan, recently told GGRAsia that a further phase of applications would benefit from clarity and stability in Japanese national politics.
