From Bloomberg – Australia’s Queensland state is considering a A$4.2 billion ($3.75 billion) casino and hotel project proposed by Hong Kong-based businessman Tony Fung in the state’s north.
The state government will look in full at the plan to redevelop 343 hectares (848 acres) of rural land north of Cairns, enabling Fung to avoid seeking separate approvals for different parts of the proposal, a spokesman for Deputy State Premier Jeff Seeney, who asked not to be identified citing department policy, said by telephone. The Aquis Great Barrier Reef resort proposal includes nine luxury hotels, 1,200 apartments and 135 villas, an 18-hole golf course, a sports stadium and a conference center, according to the state government website.
The Cairns development is the latest in a series of proposals for new casinos in Australia. It also comes after a 16 percent drop in the Australian dollar since mid April, making the nation more attractive to overseas visitors.
Echo Entertainment Group Ltd. (EGP), which has exclusive licenses to run casinos in Sydney and Brisbane, is battling proposals by billionaire James Packer’s Crown Ltd. (CWN) to build second casino resorts in both cities. The companies are seeking to cash in on tourist dollars from high-rolling Asian gamblers who’ve doubled Macau’s gaming revenues over the past three years.
