Pagcor City project looking at $6B worth of investment
Posted on June 14th, 2009
The Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corp. (Pagcor)Â is gearing up for the development of the 800-hectare entertainment complex in Roxas Boulevard, and it is expecting $6 million worth of investments to be infused by interested investors.
One of the said investor of the “Pagcor City†project is the SM group. The company is now finalizing its plans for its piece of the gaming and entertainment complex, said Pagcor chair Efraim Genuino, who added that they are expecting the SM group to pour in “more or less†$1 billion.
The SM investment Corp. (SMIC) for its part, added recently a fifth division which will focus on the burgeoning hotel and tourism business. Their other core interests are shopping mall development, retailing, banking and condominium development.
Other big investors who have already committed to the Pagcor City project include property tycoon Andrew Tan’s Alliance Global Group Inc., in partnership with the Genting group’s Star Cruises Ltd., and Aruze Corp. of Japan, which is the financier of casino bigwig Steve Wynn.
Genuino said Pagcor is now in finalizing all the documentation required to be able to start work on the reclaimed land in Manila so that investors may already start work on their respective sites. Aruze, according to Genuino will be infusing around $3 billion to the said project.
The investors would be riding on Pagcor’s license, who in turn would be entitled to a 25-percent share of the gross income from the project.
The Pagcor City project is envisioned to become the “Macau†or “Las Vegas†of the Philippines. It will offer an array of arcades, white beaches and lagoons, shopping malls, hotels, specialty restaurants, wellness centers, cultural center, sports arena and theme park.
Genuino said the casino would only constitute about 3 percent of the development. The bulk would be devoted to entertainment, such as for Warner Brothers.
