Aquis to resume talks on redevelopment of Canberra casino

Aquis Entertainment plans to resume discussions with the government on the possibility of developing its Canberra casino into an Integrated Resort.

Australia.- Aquis Entertainment has said at its annual general meeting that it’s still committed to the redevelopment of its Canberra casino and will resume conversations with the government this year.

The company received conditional approval in November 2017 to operate 200 electronic games machines as part of the redevelopment plans. However, the protect was held up due to the Covid-19 pandemic. 

Chairman Tony Fung said: “As we have reported for several years now, a redevelopment of our Casino building still forms part of ourlonger-term strategy for growth in Canberra.

“I continue to believe that the opportunity for the development of an integrated entertainment precinct in Canberra’s CBD offers the ACT a once in a lifetime tourism infrastructure opportunity.”

He added: “We will be holding discussions with the government this year to discuss the conditions in place in relation to the redevelopment and EGM’s and we look forward to the opportunity to deliver to Canberra the kind of world class entertainment precinct that our Capital city deserves and to creating many new employment opportunities and further securing all existing roles within our business.”

In January, Casino Canberra had to reduce its indoor capacity to a maximum of 505 customers to comply with government measures.

Aquis Entertainment reported that revenue decreased 23.7 per cent to AU$18.9m (US$14.9m) in 2020, while profit attributable to the owners increased 120.2 per cent to AU$798,000. 

Due to the Covid-19 pandemic, 95 per cent of Aquis Entertainment staff were stood down from their roles in 2020. Only a small team remained in place to administer the JobKeeper programme of subsidies from the government.