Inside Asian Gaming

IAG OCT 2021年10月 亞博匯 13 請登錄asgam.com訂閱《亞博匯早報》 Sign up to receive IAG Breakfast Briefing at asgam.com PHILIPPINES LIFTS MORATORIUM ON BORACAY CASINO DEVELOPMENTS 菲律賓解除對長灘 島賭場的開發禁令 PHILIPPINES GAMING REGULATOR PAGCOR says it will start accepting applications for new casino developments after a moratorium imposed by President Rodrigo Duterte in 2018 was lifted. The policy reversal is a response to the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, with the Philippines government looking for ways to increase revenue. It could also breathe new life into a plan by Philippines gaming investor Leisure and Resorts World Corp (LRWC) and Macau’s Galaxy Entertainment Group to develop a US$550 million casino resort on Boracay. “The President issued the moratorium in 2018 so … we didn’t accept any new applications,” said PAGCOR chair Andrea Domingo. “Now he has lifted [the moratorium] so we can once again receive applications for casino licenses.” The joint venture partners were granted a provisional casino license by PAGCOR in March 2018 with LRWC announcing soon after that it had purchased a 23-hectare site on Boracay upon which the resort was to be built. However, Duterte – a vocal opponent of gambling during his early days as President – quickly quashed that idea by introducing the moratorium and then shutting Boracay down for six months to address environmental concerns. He also halted a planned integrated resort development by Hong Kong-listed Landing International in Manila’s Entertainment City just days after a ground- breaking ceremony was held on the site in August 2018. 菲律賓博彩監管機構 PAGCOR表示，在總統杜特爾特解除其2018 年頒布的禁令之後，該機構將開始接受新賭場開發項目的申請。 該政策發生逆轉乃是由於疫情對菲律賓造成巨大影響，菲 政府正在尋找增加收入的渠道。而早前菲博彩投資公司Leisure and Resorts World Corp (LRWC)及澳門銀娛曾有意投資5.5億 美元在長灘島發展一個價值5.5億美元的賭場娛樂村的計劃，也 可能因此重新被擺上案頭。 PAGCOR主席Andrea Domingo說：「總統在2018年叫 停……所以我們當時不接受任何新的申請。但現在他解除了禁 令，我們可以再次接收有關賭牌的申請。」 2018年3月，PAGCOR向這對合作夥伴頒發了臨時賭牌，L- RWC隨即在不久後宣佈，已經在長灘島購買了一個23公頃的土 地，用於建造度假村。 但是，曾在總統任期早期強烈反對博彩業的杜特爾特很快通 過禁令暫停這一計劃，並關閉長灘島6個月以解決環境問題。 2018年8月，杜特爾特在香港上市公司藍鼎國際發展有限公 司在馬尼拉娛樂城的一個項目剛剛奠基不久後，就叫停了該項目 的綜合度假村開發計劃。