The Guardian – A gigantic resort proposed for far north Queensland does not need federal environmental assessment, its backers have argued, even though it includes two casinos, eight accommodation towers, a golf course and a 33-hectare lake filled via a 2.2km pipeline from the Great Barrier Reef. The $8bn Aquis project, slated for Yorkeys Knob, north of Cairns, is described as “Australia’s only genuine, world-class, integrated resort”. The resort, which would cover 340 hectares, is backed by the Hong Kong investor Tony Fung, who last year bought the Reef Casino Trust, which operates the Cairns casino. An initial advice statement…

Cairns – The proponents of a $4.2 billion mega-resort at Yorkeys Knob will open a second display office to cater for the immense community interest generated by theproject. Since opening last week, more than 1000 people have visited Aquis’ Cairns Central shop to find out more about Hong Kong investor Tony Fung’s plan to build the resort on 343ha of land north of Cairns. Mr Fung’s son, Justin Fung, last night met about 30 members of the Yorkeys Knob business community to discuss the proposal. He said there had been a positive response to the project after a “solid week…

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…

From Reuters Australian gaming firm Echo Entertainment (EGP.AX) has submitted plans for a $1 billion expansion of its Star casino in Sydney, including an option that would allow rival Crown Ltd (CWN.AX) to open a VIP-only casino. Echo, which holds the sole licence to operate a casino in Sydney until 2019, has been lobbying to extend this right in an attempt to block Crown’s plans to add to its Melbourne casino. Crown, controlled by billionaire James Packer, has said it wants to open a VIP casino in Sydney as part of a A$1 billion six-star hotel and residential waterfront development,…