A stalled casino resort project (pictured) in the Incheon Free Economic Zone in South Korea has failed to secure a 12-month extension for its first-phase opening deadline. The country’s Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism confirmed the information to GGRAsia.
R&F Korea (RFKR), promoter of the foreigner-only casino scheme at Incheon – and which is a firm linked to Hong Kong-listed Chinese developer Guangzhou R&F Properties Co Ltd – applied on December 29 to extend the date for the property’s opening. But the ministry told GGRAsia on Tuesday morning in response to our follow-up enquiry: “RFKR’s casino business permission has been officially invalidated.”
The ministry declined to comment further, other than to clarify that the RFKR side would have 90 days to appeal against the decision. GGRAsia has approached RFKR for comment on the ministry’s statement.
The most recent deadline extension had been issued on March 17, 2023, marking the fourth modification of the site’s launch timeline since 2018, a period when the legacy Caesars Entertainment Corp entity was the scheme’s casino partner. In early 2021, it was revealed that the casino brand, which had been acquired by U.S. regional casino operator Eldorado Resorts Inc, had disposed of its South Korea investment.
For its part, RFKR had pledged – at the time of the fourth deadline modification – to resume construction by July 2023, but that milestone was missed. Approximately 25 percent of the RFKR scheme has been developed, though building work has been suspended since 2020, according to the Incheon Free Economic Zone Authority (IFEZA), a public body overseeing the location.
The former RFKR scheme is on Yeongjong Island, near the country’s primary air hub, Incheon International Airport.
The site is close to another foreigner-only casino complex, Mohegan Inspire Entertainment Resort, run by United States-based Mohegan Tribal Gaming Authority, trading as Mohegan Gaming & Entertainment. The latter launched its casino in early February, after a late November launch for non-gaming. It had a formal launch ceremony on March 5.
Also at Incheon is Paradise City, a foreigner-only casino complex that is a venture between South Korea’s Paradise Co Ltd, and Japan’s Sega Sammy Holdings Inc, and which launched in 2017.
(Updated 10.27am, March 19)
