GGRAsia – Vietnam’s Laguna resort extends RFC deadline

Vietnam’s Laguna resort extends RFC deadline

Jul 21, 2015 Newsdesk Latest News, Rest of Asia, Top of the deck

The developer and operator of Vietnam’s Laguna Lăng Cô beach resort on Tuesday announced that it is extending to September 15 the submission deadline for its request for concepts (RFC) to develop what it describes as “an integrated entertainment project”, likely to include a proposal for a casino. The original deadline was August 6.

“The new deadline … provides prospective investors and companies an additional six weeks to submit their concepts for the world class integrated entertainment facilities at the resort, managed and developed by the Banyan Tree Group,” the developer said in a press release.

The Laguna Lăng Cô property (pictured) opened in April 2013 and was the first project in Vietnam to offer a Banyan Tree-branded hotel from Singapore-listed hotel and resort developer Banyan Tree Holdings Ltd. The resort, located north of Da Nang, a coastal city in central Vietnam, has an 18-hole golf course.

An RFC was issued in May to develop an integrated entertainment project within the resort, likely to include gaming. Global Market Advisors LLC, a consulting firm serving the casino gaming, hospitality and airline industries, has been hired to conduct the gaming market assessment for Laguna Lăng Cô.

“Vietnam is experiencing an exciting time in the gaming industry, with the potential loosening of the country’s gaming law expecting to attract more foreign investments,” Andrew Klebanow, a partner at Global Market Advisors, said in a statement in the press release.

“We believe that this [RFC deadline] extension is necessary in order to allow parties time to fine-tune their concepts as well as encourage more investors to participate in this RFC process,” he added.

In June, Laguna Lăng Cô said it was likely to make an announcement next year on a gaming operator partner to run the casino planned for the second phase of the project. Laguna Lăng Cô said it expected its decision to coincide with the convening of Vietnam’s National Assembly in early 2016. That date could also mark the point when the Assembly debates the future of gaming and tourism development in the country, it added.