If Thai lawmakers move to legalize integrated resorts with gaming, they may limit casinos to about 5 percent of total floor space, with an emphasis on non-gaming attractions such as restaurants, retail and other entertainment.
The Ministry of Finance is now reviewing a feasibility study that could pave the way for up to eight IRs to the country, with a tax rate of 17 percent and a required investment of about US$2.75 billion.
Deputy Finance Minister Julapun Amornvivat likened the gaming floor limits to those at Singapore’s IRs, Resorts World Sentosa and Marina Bay Sands. In 2019, the resort operators agreed to expand their own non-gaming amenities in return for an extension of their duopoly through 2030.
On April 9, the Thai cabinet voted to support a National Assembly committee report recommending IRs as a way to draw more international tourism. Lawmakers have set a goal of 80 million visitors per year by 2027.
However, the Pattaya Mail reports that casinos remain “a contentious issue” in the largely Buddhist kingdom, which has traditionally frowned on gambling. Minimizing the size of the casino floor could ease religious leaders’ concerns about IR development.
The Singapore IRs, meanwhile, will expand their casinos as part of their multibillion-dollar expansion plans. Marina Bay Sands, operated by a unit of U.S. gaming operator Las Vegas Sands Corp., will increase its gaming area by 13.3 percent to as much as 183,000 square feet, while Resorts World Sentosa, owned and operated by Genting Singapore Ltd., will grow the casino by 3.3 percent, for up to 167,000 square feet.
“However,” as a government release noted, “as non-gaming areas will expand by a much larger amount, approved gaming area as a proportion of total floor area will reduce from the existing 3.1 percent to 2.3 percent.”
