Marina Bay Sands & Resorts World Sentosa To Expand In Singapore
Singapore is a very small but affluent country in Asia that has a thriving gambling industry even though there are just two casino resorts in operation.
However, both casino resorts are world famous and are about to get bigger and better in the coming years.
Marina Bay Sands which is operated by the Las Vegas Sands Corp and Resorts World Sentosa which is operated by the Genting Group have received a license extension along with permission from the Singaporean government to expand their operations.
Singapore has very strict gaming laws that have worked well for the city-state.
The government has only sanctioned two casino licenses which Marina Bay Sands and Resorts Sentosa World operate on. Singapore’s gambling market is under a bit of a threat with Japan set to launch casino operations in the next few years.
CNA
The Singapore government knows that it needs to strengthen it gambling market to prepare for the increasing competition from the Philippines, Macau and Japan. However, instead of issuing new licenses to new operators, the government decided to extend the market monopoly that the two casino operators had till 2030 and allow them to expand their operations significantly.
Singapore will allow both casino resorts to develop more hotels and entertainment facilities. Marina Bay Sands has also been given permission to add another 1,000 slot machines to their casino floor while Resorts World Sentosa has received permission to bring in another 800 slot machines.
Billions In Foreign Investment To Pour In
Las Vegas Sands Corp will look to develop add a 4th tower to its iconic Marina Bay Sands casino resort, a luxury hotel with a total of 1,000 rooms and a 15,000 concert hall. The Malaysian based Genting Group will develop two new hotels adding another 1,100 hotel rooms. Its popular Universal Studios theme park will also have an extended makeover which will include the addition of Super Nintendo World and Minion Park.
The two casino operators are expected to pour in billions of dollars to complete these new projects. Gaming analysts initially expected each operator to invest around S$2 billion but it looks like that number will double as a total of S$4.5 billion is expected to be invested into each property.
This expansion will not only bring in massive investment to Singapore but will also help provide thousands of jobs and cause a major boost in tourism once the new projects are completed.
David WalkerAuthor
David is our resident 'down under' contributor, letting us know what is going on in the southern hemisphere, he is also keen blackjack player
