The Macao Government Tourism Office (MGTO) says it has received an inspection request for the newly-developed The 13 Hotel (pictured) on the Cotai-Coloane border. The tourism bureau is responsible for licensing hotel operations in the city.
The venue’s developer, Hong Kong-listed The 13 Holdings Ltd, also aspires to have a casino on the site. That requires a request being made to the government by one of Macau’s six licensed casino operators, under a so-called service agreement, according to a previous statement by Lionel Leong Vai Tac, Macau’s Secretary for Economy and Finance.
The tourism bureau said in a short reply to an emailed enquiry from GGRAsia: “Macao Government Tourism Office received the request for inspection on The 13 Hotel last Friday (25 May 2018).”
On Wednesday the tourism bureau said in response to our request for more information: “The inspection will be carried out within 20 days of receiving the request. If the hotel, food and beverage and other facilities inside the establishment pass the inspection, the licences will be issued as soon as possible.”
In a March 27 filing, The 13 Holdings revised the opening date for its hotel project to June 30. Several previous deadlines declared by firm have already been missed. In late January it said it hoped to launch the hotel “on or before” April 30.
In a February 25 filing, the firm said the casino at The 13 Hotel might only open by March 31, 2019, along with some shops at the complex.
It had been widely rumoured that Melco Resorts and Entertainment Ltd would supply the gaming licence for The 13 Hotel. But when Melco Resorts’ chairman and chief executive Lawrence Ho Yau Lung was asked about the matter in March, while not directly answering the question, he said it “doesn’t really matter” whether The 13 Hotel had a “contract” with Melco Resorts or another Macau casino operator, as The 13 Hotel would have first to obtain Macau government approval for casino gaming.
In early May, The 13 Holdings said its proposed name change to “South Shore Holdings Ltd” had been approved at a special general meeting of shareholders. But the date for when the proposed name change would become effective is yet to be announced.
(Updated 12.09pm, May 30)
