Pixel Companyz-led consortium eyes Nagasaki IR bid

Nov 16, 2020 Newsdesk Japan, Latest News, Top of the deck  

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Tokyo-listed Pixel Companyz Inc says the consortium it leads is to focus on Nagasaki prefecture in its pursuit of a Japan casino licence. The consortium plans to take part in that prefecture’s request-for-proposal (RFP), as part of the local processes required for that community’s tilt at getting a casino resort, known in Japan as integrated resort (IR).

Pixel Companyz said in August it had reached an agreement with French casino operator Groupe Partouche SA for the latter company to be part the consortium intending to bid for a casino licence in Japan. The consortium also said recently that United States-based architecture practice Steelman Partners LLP would handle the design of the complex.

In Monday’s release, Pixel Companyz said Nagasaki was a “very suitable” option for the kind of casino resort the consortium had planned for Japan. The company said additionally that it had already informed the authorities in Nagasaki about its intention, and that the consortium would continue with “preparations to meet the Nagasaki RFP schedule” once the prefectural authorities make an official announcement.

Pixel Companyz chief executive, Hiroaki Yoshida, as quoted in Monday’s release as saying: “Nagasaki is the optimal site for an integrated resort in Japan.”

“The prefecture has seen support for integrated resort development from both the prefectural and municipal councils, and also the private sector in the business communities of the Kyushu region,” he stated.

Mr Yoshida added: “We see Nagasaki as a great opportunity to create a unique regional resort that suits the strengths of the region and our consortium. We look to create an integrated resort that will promote regional tourism and businesses, will revitalise the local community and bring out the best of local and international culture.”

Nagasaki’s RFP process has been postponed indefinitely, a local official confirmed to GGRAsia on September 1. The prefecture’s IR tilt has been announced as the choice of the Kyushu region as a whole.

In early September, three companies that had separately confirmed to GGRAsia they would take part in Nagasaki’s RFP process concerning a casino scheme, said their plans had not changed.

Groupe Partouche terminated in May the collaboration with Hong Kong-listed firm Oshidori International Holdings Ltd in relation to efforts to develop a casino resort in Nagasaki.

A piece of land at the Huis Ten Bosch theme park (pictured) at Sasebo, within the Nagasaki prefecture, has been earmarked for an IR, should Japan’s central government approve one for Nagasaki.

A total of three casino resorts will be permitted nationally in a first phase of liberalisation. The policy has been presented as a form of stimulus for regional economies, in terms of drawing in tourists from overseas.

In early October, Japan’s national government said it planned to start accepting proposals for casino resorts from October 2021. The proposed closing date for such submissions – to be made by local governments – would be April 28, 2022.

(Updated at 9.23am, Nov 17)

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