Forbes – Excuse the metaphor, but it’s always been a gamble to guess when Taiwan will start up its first casino. Voters in one county said no thanks in 2009 after a developer had bought land for a gaming resort. An American casino operator keenest to develop in another county has gone quiet after voters said OK to gambling. And Taiwan’s legislature still hasn’t passed the core enabling legislation that would allow casinos anywhere.
But people in government expect movement this year, allowing Taiwan to open its first casino in 2019 and start vying with Singapore, the Philippines and even Macau for Asia business worth something like an annual $45-$50 billion. The world’s big-name casino operators are already interested as Taiwan sits just across a narrow strait from China, Asia’s top source of gamblers.
As early as this month, parliament could cut off fractious inter-party debate and give final approval to the Casino Management Act. Approval would allow offshore islands under Taipei’s authority to accept bids for resort-casino projects as outlined in the act. The rugged, distant archipelago of Matsu would qualify right away because last year its people voted in favor of operating casinos, which would boost infrastructure and add jobs. With the act in hand, Matsu local officials would know how many casinos are allowed – probably just one or two – and how to evaluate bids. Processing bids plus building a project would equal five years.
“Given that the act could be successfully passed in the beginning of year 2014, we optimistically expect that the earliest time the casino could open to public in Matsu is around 2019,” says Lin Kuo-shian, director-general of Taiwan’s transportation ministry department in in charge of gaming. Matsu’s tourism head Liu Te-chuan is eyeing the same timeframe. A number of household-name casino operators have quietly expressed interest but would need several years following permits to get the land and build out infrastructure, possibly including one of the small archipelago’s two civilian airports, he explains.
