Tender reopens for second IR
Multiple reports say James Packer’s Crown Resorts is behind closed doors, negotiating a deal to operate the AS Consortium casino, to be developed next to the Palazzo Versace and Sea World on Australia’s Gold Coast. Both the World Casino Directory and the Australian report that Crown is holding “secret talks” to finalize the deal. Neither AS nor Crown has confirmed the report.
Last summer, the Queensland state government OK’d the $2 billion AS project. But heavy foreign involvement may have given pause to the Palaszczuk administration; the consortium’s chief backers are two Chinese state-owned firms, China State Construction Engineering Corp. and KCC Guangzhou Dredging Corp. A local operator would make sense, and according to CalvinAyre.com, a deal with AS “would at least partly alleviate the sting Crown felt after losing out to archrival Star Entertainment Group (formerly Echo Entertainment) for the right to build the Queen’s Wharf casino in Brisbane.” The AS casino would directly compete with Star’s Jupiters casino at Broad beach, which is in the midst of an $850 million upgrade.
The government is also expected to reopen bidding for the region’s second integrated resort following an announcement by Tony Fung that he will not seek a gaming license for his Aquis Great Barrier Reef project near Cairns until its Phase I development is complete.
AS’s Gold Coast resort complex is expected to include residential apartments, a luxury hotel and convention facilities as well as a casino, reported WCD.
