• Subscribe
  • Magazines
  • About
  • Contact
  • Advertise
Tuesday 28 June 2022
  • 中文中文
  • 日本語日本語
IAG
Advertisement
  • Newsfeed
  • Mag Articles
  • Video
  • Opinion
  • Tags
  • Regional
    • Africa
    • Australia
    • Cambodia
    • China
    • CNMI
    • Europe
    • Hong Kong
    • India
    • Japan
    • Laos
    • Latin America
    • Malaysia
    • Macau
    • Nepal
    • New Zealand
    • North America
    • North Korea
    • Philippines
    • Russia
    • Singapore
    • South Korea
    • Sri Lanka
    • Thailand
    • Vietnam
  • Events
  • Consulting
  • Contributors
  • SUBSCRIBE FREE
  • 中文
No Result
View All Result
IAG
  • Newsfeed
  • Mag Articles
  • Video
  • Opinion
  • Tags
  • Regional
    • Africa
    • Australia
    • Cambodia
    • China
    • CNMI
    • Europe
    • Hong Kong
    • India
    • Japan
    • Laos
    • Latin America
    • Malaysia
    • Macau
    • Nepal
    • New Zealand
    • North America
    • North Korea
    • Philippines
    • Russia
    • Singapore
    • South Korea
    • Sri Lanka
    • Thailand
    • Vietnam
  • Events
  • Consulting
  • Contributors
  • SUBSCRIBE FREE
  • 中文
No Result
View All Result
IAG
No Result
View All Result

MGM Osaka agreement contains “escape” clause in case Japan IR business environment turns sour

Ben Blaschke by Ben Blaschke
Sun 27 Feb 2022 at 22:04
Osaka launches RFP process for Japan’s first IR

Osaka

56
SHARES
1.4k
VIEWS
Print Friendly, PDF & Email

The Basic Agreement signed this month between Osaka and its preferred operating partners – a consortium headed by MGM Resorts and ORIX Corp – for the development of an integrated resort contains an escape clause by which the operator can withdraw if market conditions are deemed unsatisfactory.

The clause would apply should Japan’s central government certify Osaka’s bid to develop an IR. It gives the MGM-ORIX consortium the power to cancel the contract once 30 days have passed after certification.

It also lists three conditions that must be fulfilled in order to ensure the escape clause can’t be triggered. They are:

  • The reasonable expectation that Japan’s domestic and foreign tourism demand will fully recover from the COVID-19 pandemic.
  • A guarantee that international competitiveness can be maintained based on the rules put in place by the Japan Casino Regulatory Commission.
  • A promise to take appropriate measures to address soil contamination concerns on the proposed development site of Yumeshima Island.

The Basic Agreement says Osaka Prefecture will work with Osaka IR (SPC) – a Special Purpose Company jointly established by MGM and ORIX to operate an IR in Osaka – to make all reasonable efforts to determine whether the conditions will be fulfilled. However, it also specifies that the Basic Agreement can be terminated if the SPC, rather than Osaka city or prefecture, determine that the conditions cannot be met.

Osaka officials must then be informed of the decision within 60 days of certification, at which point the operators will pay a fee of JPY 650 million (US$5.6 million).

While it remains to be seen whether MGM and ORIX would seriously consider activating such a clause, or whether Osaka will win central government approval in the first place, the fact that the operators have been handed their very own “Get out of jail free” card seems highly unusual and casts further doubt over the future of IRs in Japan.

Osaka is one of three prefectures, alongside Nagasaki and Wakayama, planning to submit a bid for IR development by the central government’s April 2022 deadline. Up to three licenses can be issued under Japan’s IR Implementation Act although Osaka has long been viewed as the most likely, and possibly the only, of the three bidders to receive one.

Should it eventually become reality, MGM Resorts’ Osaka integrated resort is projected to include 2,500 hotel rooms across three hotel brands, 730,000 square feet of MICE space and tourism facilities to showcase the best of Osaka and Japan.

RelatedPosts

Uneasy alliance

Anti-IR group planning to appeal Osaka IR plans to central government

Thu 23 Jun 2022 at 06:20
Taxation tremors

Japan denies reports of eased sports betting restrictions

Thu 9 Jun 2022 at 06:22
Wynn and MGM comparison on Las Vegas Strip and in Macau

Wynn and MGM comparison on Las Vegas Strip and in Macau

Tue 7 Jun 2022 at 06:03
Sega Sammy names Tokyo as preferred IR location

Japan PM says online casinos to remain illegal, promises further crackdowns

Fri 3 Jun 2022 at 06:38
Load More
Tags: Basic agreementirJapanMGM ResortsOrixYumeshima
Share22Share4
Ben Blaschke

Ben Blaschke

A former sports journalist in Sydney, Australia, Ben has been Managing Editor of Inside Asian Gaming since early 2016. He played a leading role in developing and launching IAG Breakfast Briefing in April 2017 and oversees as well as being a key contributor to all of IAG’s editorial pursuits.

Current Issue

Editorial: The Philippines: Asia’s rising star

Editorial: The Philippines: Asia’s rising star

by Ben Blaschke
Mon 30 May 2022 at 23:55

Macau has for the best part of two decades been recognized as the undisputed king of Asia when it comes...

We’re Back!

We’re Back!

by Ben Blaschke
Mon 30 May 2022 at 23:39

While Macau’s operators have reached nine consecutive quarters of substantial GGR losses, the rest of Asia is opening up and...

Into the Sunset

Into the Sunset

by Pierce Chan
Mon 30 May 2022 at 23:29

Pawnbroking has a long history in Macau, dating all the way back to the late Qing Dynasty. The rapid development...

Metaverse: The ultimate destination marketing tool?

Metaverse: The ultimate destination marketing tool?

by Victoria White
Mon 30 May 2022 at 23:17

In the first of a two-part series, MdME’s Victoria White takes a closer look at the rising world of metaverses...

Related Posts

Confirmed COVID cases in Macau reach 391, and one 60-year-old lady severe

Confirmed COVID cases in Macau reach 391, and one 60-year-old lady severe

by Pierce Chan
Mon 27 Jun 2022 at 20:01

The number of confirmed cases of COVID in Macau has grown to 391, including a 60-year-old woman with difficulty in breathing who has been classified a “serious case” by the Health Bureau. According to the Novel Coronavirus Response Coordination Center,...

Philippines power giant reveals plan to develop new Metro Manila IR

PAGCOR says US$43 million in uncollected POGO fees mostly accounted for

by Ben Blaschke
Mon 27 Jun 2022 at 16:05

Philippines gaming regulator PAGCOR says it has already resolved more than a third of outstanding accounts receivable owed by Philippine Offshore Gaming Operators, as calculated by the Commission on Audit (COA). The COA revealed last week that Php2.33 billion (US$42.5...

Ongoing COVID outbreak in Macau up to 357 cases

Ongoing COVID outbreak in Macau up to 357 cases

by Pierce Chan
Mon 27 Jun 2022 at 10:15

The number of confirmed positive cases of COVID since the continuing Macau outbreak began on 19 June has reached 357. There were 96 new nucleic acid test (NAT) positive cases found in the past 24 hours. Of those cases, 50...

Macau government reminds gaming operators of importance of maintaining strict COVID-19 health measures on casino floors

Casinos told to reduce personnel, increase testing, as Macau COVID-19 outbreak reaches 299 cases

by Ben Blaschke
Mon 27 Jun 2022 at 06:07

Macau’s Gaming Inspection and Coordination Bureau (DICJ) has called on the city’s casino operators to reduce the number of personnel working on gaming floors and enhance testing and protection procedures as the city’s first major COVID-19 outbreak continues to grow....


HKUST

HKUST

Simple Play

IAG

© 2005-2022
Inside Asian Gaming.
All rights reserved.

  • SUBSCRIBE FREE
  • NEWSFEED
  • MAG ARTICLES
  • VIDEO
  • OPINION
  • TAGS
  • REGIONAL
  • EVENTS
  • CONSULTING
  • Contributors
  • MAGAZINES
  • ABOUT
  • CONTACT
  • ADVERTISE
  • 中文

No Result
View All Result
  • 中文
  • Subscribe
  • Newsfeed
  • Mag Articles
  • Video
  • Opinion
  • Tags
  • Regional
  • Events
  • Contributors
  • Consulting
  • Magazines
  • Advertise
  • Contact
  • About
  • 中文

© 2005-2022
Inside Asian Gaming.
All rights reserved.