Chinese construction firm Guangzhou R&F Properties Co Ltd has reportedly fired all employees of its Korean subsidiary, Tianli Korea Construction, who had been working on the construction site of Incheon’s Midan City Resort Complex.
Midan City Resort Complex is an integrated resort and casino development previously known as Caesars Korea Resort Complex until Caesars Entertainment sold its 50% interest to Guangzhou R&F in January.
According to a report by Korean media outlet Joongbu Ilbo, around 30 employees of Tianli Korea Construction were notified of their dismissal last week – part of Guangzhou’s efforts to streamline operations by liquidating Tianli.
However, it is expected that development of Midan City Resort Complex will still resume in the coming weeks with Guangzhou R&F to assume direct responsibilities for its construction.
The change comes barely a week after Korea’s Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism granted a 12-month extension to the construction deadline of the IR, considerably less than the three-year extension Guangzhou R&F had requested after acquiring Caesars’ stake in January.
First started in September 2017, construction work on Midan City Resort Complex was halted in February 2020 after Tianli was unable to cover KRW30 billion (US$27 million) in costs due to Caesars ceasing any further investment.
The Joongbu Ilbo report suggests Guangzhou R&F is now poised to proceed with the development directly.
A company representative said, “The procedure to liquidate the corporation will take time, but we are first adjusting the requirements by conducting an interview with the employees to cancel the contract. It has nothing to do with the [Midan City] project.”