Wynn Al Marjan Island, a casino resort project in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) involving Wynn Resorts Ltd, is close to the hotel-tower construction phase, according to investment bank JP Morgan.
“Its project in the UAE, continues its construction with much of the hotel tower and podium foundation now complete, and will soon start going vertical on the hotel tower,” wrote analysts Joe Greff, Samuel Nielsen and Ryan Lambert in a Wednesday note.
Al Marjan Island is reclaimed land in Ras Al Khaimah, part of the UAE in the Middle East.
Facilities at Wynn Al Marjan Island (pictured in an artist’s rendering) are due to include a hotel with 1,500 rooms, as well as an events centre and a theatre, according to previous commentary from Wynn Resorts. The property, which is also to include gaming, is set to open in “early 2027”, according to the firm.
The project has been described as a US$3.9-billion venture involving local partners, in which Wynn Resorts is a 40-percent equity investor. Wynn Resorts is the parent of Macau casino operator Wynn Macau Ltd.
In Wednesday commentary on Wynn Resorts’ fourth-quarter earnings call, Craig Billings, chief executive, described the Ras Al Khaimah scheme as “a substantial growth opportunity in the UAE that will further diversify our portfolio and expand our brand into new markets”.
Jim Murren, a former chairman and chief executive of MGM Resorts, had in September been appointed chairman of a UAE body called the General Commercial Gaming Regulatory Authority (GCGRA). It will be responsible for regulating commercial gaming, and a national lottery.
Wynn Resorts is also in the running for one of three downstate-New York licences in the United States. It already operates Wynn Las Vegas in Las Vegas, Nevada – where the group also has a “huge land bank,” as per the CEO’s mention on the latest earnings call – and Encore Boston Harbor in Massachusetts.
