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Cypern – Endast Melco/Hard Rock har säkrat mark för Cyperns kasino
By phil - 14 september 2016
Reports out of Cyprus suggest that the three horse race to land a casino licence could soon be whittled down to just one.
Two of the bidders are struggling to secure land for their projects with government officials claiming that having extended the deadline for the current final stage round once already, the government is unwilling to extend it again.
Commerce Minister Yiorgos Lakkotrypis recently told a parliamentary committee that the license would still be awarded before the end of 2016, making it hard for another deadline extension to be granted.
Currently only a consortium made up of Melco International, Hard Rock and local agricultural company Phassouri, has successfully secured land for the project.
The other two final stage bidders Bloomberry of the Philippines and Naga Corp of Cambodia have already been granted a three-month extension from The Legal and the Audit Services in Cyprus,.taking them up to October 5 to submit their final detailed outline for the project. But with neither yet to finalise the land for the developments, sources believe Melco International could be left with no competition.
A report in a Cypriot newspaper recently suggested that Bloomberry was being put off the project due to the cost of land whilst Naga Corp was still deep in discussion with land owners.
Reports have also suggested that Melco-Hard Rock will object to any further extension, claiming it could walk way if there is any further delay. It is believed that the Hard Rock/Melco team is looking at a location in Limassol on the southern coast. Bloomberry Resorts is reportedly eyeing the potential of Paphos in the south west whilst Nagacorp is considering a Lamarca-based project.
Totalt 12 stora företag från USA, Filippinerna, Kambodja, Ryssland och Frankrike hade formellt uttryckt sitt intresse för Cypernlicensen.
Priset är en licens att driva inte bara en Integrated Casino Resort utan upp till fyra satellitkasinolokaler, i andra distrikt än det där ICR kommer att finnas. Var och en kommer att vara licensierad för drift av upp till 50 spelautomater per plats.
Enligt ramverket kommer den vinnande budgivaren att behöva bygga en holistisk integrerad resort, den första i sitt slag i Europa. Det kommer att innehålla 500 hotellrum, plus ett kasino med mer än 1,000 100 slots och 30 bordsspel. Gruppen kommer att beviljas en 15-årig kasinolicens med en exklusivitetstid på XNUMX år.
