Casinos Austria International has revealed that it intends to join the competition for a gambling operation license in Japan in case Nagasaki is one of the destinations to host recently approved integrated casino resorts in the country.
The Managing Director of the Austrian gambling operator, which is a leading player in the global casino gaming industry, confirmed that the Japan unit of the company is in a process of forming a consortium seeking to operate a casino resort that could be situated at Sasebo, Nagasaki Prefecture. Akio Hayashi, Managing Director of the casino company’s Japanese unit, also explained that Casinos Austria International is willing to create what he called a “European-style integrated resort” in the city, instead of copying the grandeur of the casino resorts in Las Vegas or Macau.
Speaking at the Kyushu Nagasaki Integrated Resort Business-Connect Seminar, Mr. Hayashi shared that his company’s plans were amazing, as the operator was willing to establish an integrated resort, which would not only offer casino services to its visitors but also conference, exhibition and meetings areas, which would match the city’s appearance.
The representative of Casinos Austria International further shared that the group was considering the site which was locally preferred by the prefecture and revealed that the operator intended to work in collaboration with Kengo Kuma, a high-profile architect in Japan.
Nagasaki to Launch a Request-for-Concept Phase to Check Interest in Integrated Casino Resort Establishment
Currently, Nagasaki prefecture is considered one of the most advanced regions in Japan when it comes to the recently legalized integrated casino resorts, with lots of public support being gathered for the time being.
The government authorities in the Nagasaki prefecture have pointed a 30-hectare piece of land at the Huis Ten Bosch amusement park in Sasebo city as a preferred location for the potential establishment of an integrated casino resort. For the time being, a number of operators, including foreign casino companies have already demonstrated willingness to compete for an ICR license.
Over the first phase of the gambling market liberalization in Japan, a maximum of three licenses will be issued by the country’s authorities.
So, the prefecture of Nagasaki and the city of Sasebo are getting ready to launch a request-for-concept phase for potential commercial partners who are interesting in operating a casino resort in the country. As explained by Shinichi Yoshida, a Nagasaki official, in an interview for GGRAsia, this is expected to happen sometime in the autumn. For the time being, there is no fixed date for the release of the request-for-concept phase, because the prefecture authorities have many things to take care of.
According to preliminary expectations, if an operating integrated casino resort license is awarded to Nagasaki, the prefecture is hoping to be able to open such a resort within the same time frame considered by Osaka – around 2025. Osaka has been among the Japanese locations which have been mostly rumored as possible destinations for an integrated casino resort.
