GGRAsia – Okada to complete Manila casino by 2017: report

Okada to complete Manila casino by 2017: report

Mar 10, 2015 Newsdesk Latest News, Philippines, Top of the deck

Tiger Resort, Leisure and Entertainment Inc – developer of Philippine casino project Manila Bay Resorts, originally slated as a US$2.3 billion venture – has reportedly been told it will be allowed to “complete” the resort by the first quarter of 2017. Tiger Resort is controlled by Japanese gaming entrepreneur Kazuo Okada.

In October, Tiger Resort was ordered by the Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corp (Pagcor), the country’s gaming regulator, to “open” its Manila casino project (pictured in an artist’s rendering) in the first quarter of 2015, or face forfeiture of a PHP100 million (US$2.26 million) guarantee.

Tiger Resort last month requested an extension of the deadline of the project completion, according to local media.

“The immediate effect is if they [Okada group] failed to finish by March 31, 2015, it would mean forfeiture of the PHP100 million bond they submitted to us,” Pagcor president and chief operating officer Jorge Sarmiento told lawmakers on Monday, reported Philippine newspaper BusinessWorld.

The newspaper also quoted Mr Sarmiento saying the gaming regulator is currently evaluating the progress of the project and that if it found “that they are more than 50 percent delayed, it could mean suspension or revocation of their licence”.

News of the 2017 “completion” date comes as local media also reported Tiger Resort had pledged to spend US$700 million extra on the venue. Local media additionally said Tiger Resort would be allowed a 97,000-square-metres (1.04 million-sq.-feet) enlargement of the property’s gross floor area.

GGRAsia approached both Tiger Resort and Pagcor for comment on the report, but had not received any information at the time the story went online.