VinaCapital claims $4b casino project near realisation

 “We expect to start construction on this development in mid-2015. We are determined to develop it because this is a very big tourism project,” Don Lam, co-founder and CEO of VinaCapita, told VIR on the sidelines of the company’s investor conference held in Hanoi last week.

Lam said that VinaCapital had all but completed its partnership negotiations with a foreign company, which will replace Malaysia’s Genting Group as project investors. Lam refused to reveal the investor’s name because “it is still confidential and the partnership agreement has not yet been signed”.

In addition, he is also optimistic that other inland infrastructure projects supporting the South Hoi An integrated casino and resort will be completed within the first half of next year, allowing the developer to commence construction smoothly.

“In 18 to 24 months after we commence construction in mid-2015, the resort will be operational,” he said.

South Hoi An is the largest tourism property project in Quang Nam, and is already home to several luxury coastal resorts. The project was initially being developed by VinaCapita and Genting Malaysia Berhad, and comprised five-star hotels, villas, and an electronic gaming facility aimed at the foreign tourist market.

However, in September 2012, as the project was in the process of site clearance, Genting suddenly announced its withdrawal, forcing VinaCapital to find other partners to jointly develop the project.

To make it more attractive to prospective investors, VinaCapital proposed that the local authorities reduce the size of the project from 1,538 hectares to a more manageable 1,000 hectares. The developer also asked for permission to extend the project’s lifetime to 50 years since the new investment certificate issuance.

In addition, the developers also asked to add an extra 20 gaming tables to the facility, bringing the total number to 90 for the first phase of this project, matching the number in the Ho Tram Strip project in Ba Ria-Vung Tau province.

Earlier this year, Chu Lai Open Economic Zone Authority, the provincial authority in charge of overseeing the South Hoi An project, revealed that VinaCapital had introduced American company Peninsula Pacific for joint investment into the project. The two companies even committed to the first phase of the development, comprising a 500-room five-star hotel, which was due to be completed by the end of 2015.

However, at present it looks likely that Peninsula Pacific will withdraw from the project and will possibly be replaced by Hong Kong-based Chow Tai Fook Enterprises Ltd. This company has a wealth of experience in the development of hotels and casinos, and in September they came to study the investment opportunity at South Hoi An, according to a source at Chu Lai Open Economic Zone Authority.