Marina Bay Sands’ Ongoing Hotel Renovation To Benefit Casino Players

Summary

• Marina Bay Sands is building more hotel suites as part of a major renovation project
• Most of the new suites will go to casino players
• The lifting of restrictions will boost the casino resort’s operations in 2022

Marina Bay Sands in Singapore will soon offer more hotel suites for casino players. The casino resort will upgrade its hotel accommodation as part of a major refurbishment project that will see the number of its hotel suites grow by 200 percent.

At the moment, Marina Bay Sands houses 150 hotel suites catering to tourists, business visitors, free independent travelers, group customers and casino players.

Upon the completion of the US$1 billion renovation project which is currently underway, the resort will become home to 450 hotel suites. A large percentage of that will go to its casino customers, according to investment research and institutional asset management firm Sanford C Bernstein Ltd. This should enhance premium casino play which will drive more profit to Marina Bay Sands.

As a result of the refurbishment, the casino resort’s total number of hotel accommodation units will reduce from 2,550 to 2,250. The project is expected to be fully completed by summer 2023, but some of the suites will be operational as early as this year. This was confirmed in a recent conference call by Rob Goldstein, chairman and CEO of Las Vegas Sands Corporation, the parent company of Marina Bay Sands.

During the call, Goldstein also announced that Marina Bay Sands’ net revenues in the first quarter of 2022 dropped to US$399 million, compared to the US$426 million recorded in the same period last year. That brings the company’s Q1 adjusted earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization (EBITDA) to US$121 million, down from the US$144 million collected in the first quarter of 2021.

Business Performance Will Improve In 2022

The casino resort is expected to perform better for the rest of the year as Singapore has now lifted almost all remaining pandemic-related restrictions. Travelers are no longer required to undergo tests before departure, with the government also now allowing businesses to operate at 100 percent capacity.

The ongoing hotel accommodation refurbishment is separate from the expansion plan previously agreed by the casino resort with the Singapore Tourism Board. The US$3.31 billion extension will likely commence in April 2023 as both parties agreed to delay the start of the project by one year due to the challenges and difficulties posed by COVID-19. The major deal, signed in 2019, will drive significant growth and provide long-term benefits for the casino resort.