14 Teams to Vie for Two Integrated Resorts

SINGAPORE-The Singapore Tourism Board has named the 14 groups it has invited to submit final proposals for two integrated resorts here that will cost an estimated US$3 billion to develop. The announcement follows last week’s decision by the Singapore government to allow the resorts to include gambling. The guidelines for the final proposals are expected to be issued before June 30; the deadline for submitting the proposals has not yet been determined. The successful bids will be unveiled in December. The resorts are expected to be operational in 2009.The Singapore Tourism Board did not post the announcement to its website and could not be reached Monday for comment. According to reports coming out of Asia, the list of US operators includes Harrah’s Entertainment, Wynn Resorts, MGM Mirage, Kerzner International, Eighth Wonder, Las Vegas Sands and Argosy. Internationally, the list includes TabCorp and PBL/Melco of Australia, Sun International and Peermont Global of South Africa, Genting International of Malaysia, and Guocoland and HPL Properties of Singapore. One of the resorts will be located on Sentosa Island and the other on Marina Bay. The Sentosa Island property, which is approximately 30 acres, is slated to be a business and convention facility. The Marina Bay site is 116 acres and planned as a family friendly resort. The resorts are expected to create 35,000 new jobs and boost Singapore’s GDP by 1.5 billion Singapore dollars.In January, the STB said its long-term goal is to double visitor arrivals to 17 million, triple tourism receipts to 30 billion Singapore dollars (US$18.3 billion) and create 100,000 new jobs to the tourism industry by 2015. The STB will use a 2-billion Singapore dollars Tourism Development Fund to help realize its goal. In 2004, the Singapore tourism industry performed well, exceeding STB’s targets for both tourism receipts and visitor arrivals. Tourism generated an estimated 9.6 billion Singapore dollars in tourism revenue in 2004, exceeding STB’s target of $8.7 billion for the year. Singapore also welcomed a record 8.3 million visitors in 2004, which was 36% higher than 2003 and 10% higher than its goal for the year of 7.6 million visitors.The conditions set forth by the Singapore government with regard to the gambling component include a rule that no more than 5% of the total floor area of each complex be dedicated to gambling. A variety of other rules were set up to discourage locals from excessive gambling, to educate locals on the dangers of gambling and to set up programs to assist compulsive gamblers.