A Nepalese court has issued a temporary order preventing Silver Heritage Group from either selling Tiger Palace Resort or developing the property any further due to alleged encroachment onto public land.
According to the Kathmandu Post, the Rupandehi District Court issued the order on Friday against Silver Heritage’s local subsidiaries, Tiger One and Silver Heritage Investment, in response to a writ from the chairman of a water use group. The writ alleges Tiger Palace Resort, located around eight kilometers from the Nepal-India border in Bhairahawa, has encroached on four plots of land belonging to a public canal and another belonging to the government.
The timing of the writ is notable given the Australian-listed IR operator recently revealed it may be open to selling Tiger Palace Resort and has enlisted Union Gaming to seek out potential suitors.
Silver Heritage was forced to suddenly shut down gaming operations at the Vietnam casino it managed, Phoenix International Club, in late February after being advised by its partner that table games were no longer permitted under a revised Investment Certificate. Phoenix International Club had accounted for around 45% of the group’s revenue prior to closure.
The plaintiff’s lawyer in this new Nepal land case, Lekhnath Pokhrel, said the order means that “no structure can be developed on the land until a final verdict is given on the case.”
Despite reports of widespread interest in a possible purchase of Tiger Palace Resort, Inside Asian Gaming understands that Silver Heritage Group considers a sale to be its last resort. The company announced last month that it was in “advanced discussions” regarding various capital raising options.
Trading of Silver Heritage shares on the Australian Securities Exchange is currently suspended.