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BY Likha C. Cuevas, Reporter
LAS Vegas-based Wynn Resorts said it is pursuing investment
opportunities in the Philippines, one of which is a hotel casino
similar to its Macau facility.
The company’s disclosure comes
as state-run Philippine Gaming and Amusement Corp. (Pagcor)
announced plans to set up a world-class gaming and entertainment
complex in Manila Bay, patterned after Las Vegas of the United
States.
Tim Shiah, a representative of
Jack Binion of Wynn Resorts, said the company is “committed to
look at all opportunities in the Philippines.” Jack Binion runs
the international operations of the hotel casino chain, the first of
which was Wynn Macau.
“Wynn Macau is actually looking
into the Philippines. Jack Binion is director of Wynn International
that’s why he’s been down here for the last couple of years and
they’re looking [around],” Shiah said at the Asia Gaming and
Entertainment Expo briefing.
“You know the biggest asset in
the Philippines—and I can’t preach this loud enough—is the
people here, the workforce,” he added.
Hotel chain owner Steve Wynn and
Binion had talked about duplicating Wynn Macau in the country, Shiah
said, adding that the renewal of the license and eventual amendment
to the charter of Pagcor would make it easier for the group to enter
the local gaming scene.
Efraim Genuino, Pagcor chairman,
said Congress’ renewal of the company’s franchise is
instrumental to the amendment of its charter. He said Congress
tweaked part of Pagcor’s charter to allow it to enter into joint
ventures for future projects, including the proposed “Pagcor
City.”
“Now that is clearly
established [Pagcor charter] … there [are] definitely some big
[establishments] other than Mr. Binion and Mr. Wynn [looking at
Philippines]. There’s Poster Gaming Financial from Las Vegas,
Nevada. There are several groups looking. Unfortunately, a lot of
groups aren’t going to lay out their cards on the table. But I can
assure you that they’re actively pursuing the Philippines,”
Shiah said.
The Wynn representative said
building the hotel casino in the country would probably cost the
same as the Macau facility at around $1.4 billion. The future Wynn
Resort Philippines has the potential to grow bigger than the one in
the Chinese territory, because the country has beautiful beach
resorts.
The hotel group is also eyeing
future investments in Pagcor City and it may not only be in the form
of casinos but may also include Las Vegas-style entertainment.
“There’s so much revenue
generated from the tourists, from the shows and the entertainment.
The gaming is a small component. It’s a critical component but
it’s small,” Shiah said.
With the rise of Pagcor City and
entry of other big gaming corporations in the country, the
Philippines may overtake Macau in terms of size and revenue in 7 to
10 years, he said.
Genuino said Pagcor City will sit
on 800 hectares of reclaimed land along Manila Bay.
The project, which will be
finished in two years, is estimated to cost between $15 billion and
$20 billion.
The Pagcor official said
investors from Europe, Japan, the United States and South Korea have
already signified interest to fund the venture.
“Ninety percent of the funds
for the project will come from foreign investors,” he said.
The official said that the
Japanese investors are interested in developing a retirement village
within the area for its retirees.
Genuino said that the
construction of the first phase, which will include a resort,
hotels, and a theme park, starts this year. The project has three
phases.
He said the investments from
foreign partners will be finalized this year after Pagcor’s
charter is amended.
Last year Pagcor posted about P25
billion in revenues, higher than the previous year’s P23 billion.
“Eighty percent of our revenue [last year] came from foreign
tourists,” Genuino said.
“The thrust now is not casino
gaming but total local entertainment. In the global arena, only 25
percent of the revenues of gaming destinations such as Las Vegas
come from actual gambling,” he said.
--With Darwin G. Amojelar
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