Macau Legend’s planned casino in the African republic of Cape Verde is going nowhere fast.
According to Asia Gaming Brief, delays in construction and missed financial deadlines have put the US$271.2 million development at risk, with the nation finally threatening legal action. The African archipelago is a group of islands in the Atlantic, about 400 miles from western Africa.
The Cape Verde government has demanded proof that the company has the financial resources to continue the project and a timeline for its completion, TDM Canal Macau reported.
The project, based in the capital city of Praia, broke ground in 2016 and was set to be complete in February 2021. The plan included a hotel and casino, a marina, a convention center, residential area and a parking lot. At present, only an eight-story structure and a bridge from the island to the peninsula are finished.
Macau Legend owns the subsidiaries slated to operate the hotel and gaming business of the casino resort. Macau Legend recorded a loss of HK$485.5 million (US$61 million) in the first half of 2022.
Macau Legend blamed the delays on the Covid-19 pandemic and the conflict in Ukraine, and asked for a grace period until the end of 2022 to fulfill the government’s requirements. It missed that deadline, and a January 18 letter from authorities gave it one week more to respond before “the activation of legal and conventional mechanisms defined by the judicial instruments which apply to relations between Cape Verde and the promoter.”
Even then, Macau Legend was late to reply. It finally did, nine days later, and pleaded that the Chinese New Year holidays had kept it from completing the necessary paperwork.
In spite of the dispute, the Cape Verde government seems receptive to a solution, stating its intention “to dialogue with and help investors, both national and external.”
Macau Legend has been in rocky seas since 2020, when it was partly acquired by now defunct junket operator Tak Chun. Company CEO Levo Chan was arrested in January 2022 and is now on trial for alleged money laundering and criminal association. AGB reports that Macau Legend has undergone numerous board changes since Chan’s detention.
Under its agreement with Cape Verde authorities, Macau Legend would be granted a 25-year casino concession, starting with a 10-year period of exclusivity for land-based gaming, iGaming and sports betting.
