In a second-quarter report issued on August 6, Genting Singapore confirmed that the planned US$3.3 billion expansion of Resorts World Sentosa will be delayed due to Covid-19’s impact on global supply chains. The company further stated that the expansion plan may undergo some changes due to those delays.
“The timeline of the project will be impacted due to design changes required by safety management measures and disruption to the construction industry and global supply chain caused by the pandemic,” Genting stated. “It is also envisioned that new design changes will be necessary to adapt to the post Covid-19 environment.”
Singapore Tourism Board CEO Keith Tan recently told Bloomberg TV that “an overall slowdown in construction activity because of difficulties being faced by the construction sector and the challenges they are facing with their workers and their workforce.”
Genting also said that it will pay for land to be used in the expansion in the second half of 2020.
Tan said both Genting and Marina Bay Sands, which recently won 10-year expansions of their duopoly in the market, “have not indicated any slippage of their investment commitments here in Singapore.”
RWS 2.0 would increase the property’s gross floor area by 50 percent, adding 164,000 square meters (1.76 million square feet) of leisure and entertainment space, reported Inside Asian Gaming.
Among the planned additions are an expansion of Universal Studios Singapore, 1,100 new hotel rooms, an enhanced waterfront promenade with restaurants and retail, expanded MICE facilities and a driverless transport system around the property.
Genting Singapore reported a loss of SG$163.3 million (US$119.1 million) in the second quarter and a 99 percent decline in gaming revenue at Resorts World Sentosa to SG$6.5 million (US$4.7 million).
The resort closed in April due to the viral outbreak and reopened in July on order of Singapore Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong. Property-wide revenue including non-gaming fell 94 percent year-on-year to SG$41.3 million as Genting Singapore reported an EBITDA loss of SG$131.8 million.
“The global Covid-19 pandemic has caused major disruptions to the global travel and tourism industry,” the company said. “Despite the swift implementation of a series of cost containment measures including payroll rationalization as well as other productivity initiatives, the impact of suffering almost zero revenue during the temporary closure period in the second quarter 2020 was devastating.”
Genting Singapore noted that the 2Q result was “the worst quarterly performance since the opening of our Singapore integrated resorts,” adding, “The group remains pessimistic on the overall financial performance as global travel remains highly restrictive.”
Resorts World Sentosa reportedly has laid 2,000 of the IR’s 7,000 employees.
The company has decided not to declare a first-half dividend, a decision JP Morgan Securities (Asia Pacific) Ltd. described as “disappointing but certainly understandable.”
Tan told Bloomberg Singapore is trying to attract a wider range of business and leisure visitors to boost the tourism sector and warned the return of mass travel is a long way off.
“Whether it is a broader range of business visitors or, for example, small groups of tightly controlled leisure visitors, all these are being considered and are on the table,” he said.
Meanwhile, three out of every four workers remaining at RWS is a Singapore local, confirmed the city-state’s Ministry of Manpower in a statement reported by GGRAsia. The government body said the proportion of locals at the site had risen to 75 percent from 66 percent, as proportionately more foreigners had been let go than locals.
