Delta Corp to replace Goa casino boat to increase capacity
Hardik Dhebar, Delta Corp’s chief financial officer, has announced the company will replace Deltin Caravela in Goa with a new boat to increase capacity by 2.5 times.
India.- Delta Corp‘s new Goa casino ship, which is being built to replace the Deltin Caravela, will offer a 2.5-fold increase in capacity. According to Hardik Dhebar, Delta Corp’s chief financial officer, capacity had become an issue during peak periods when managers had to close channels to comply with Covid-19 restrictions.
He also said the Covid-19 pandemic had changed some access patterns as more people came earlier in the day due to the forced early closure. The casino is currently only open for about 50 per cent of the time due to people coming in after 7.30pm.
The company is also planning an initial public offering for its online unit, targeting the first or second quarter of the current fiscal year, which starts on April 1 in India. According to Asian Gaming Brief, some of the cash will be used to expand Gaussian Networks, which runs the Adda52 online poker site.
Online poker is a niche market, and the company plans to introduce a multi-game platform to offer other games of skill, such as rummy and fantasy sports, Dhebar said. Those games will reach a wider mass market, he said.
Delta Corp has reported record quarterly numbers amid a surge in pent-up demand after Goa lifted pandemic-related restrictions, and Dhebar said he expects to be able to maintain the momentum. Net income for the quarter ended December was Rs2,472 crore, up from Rs1,208 a year earlier.
Total revenue from the gaming business grew from Rs975m to Rs2.496bn, while revenue from the online business fell from Rs404.5m to Rs357m. The company also reported an increase in profit attributable to company owners from Rs12.8m to Rs703.8 m.
Deltin Group awaits casino licence in Daman
In an interview with Travel Trends Today, Anil Malani, Deltin Group’s CEO spoke about the company’s plans for the current year and how the Covid-19 pandemic affected its businesses in Goa. Malani said casinos in Goa remain a major draw, but that the company is also awaiting a licence in Daman, in the union territory of Daman and Diu, north of Mumbai.
Malani said: “Casinos are a major tourist attraction in Goa and they not only help revive the long-struggling travel & tourism industry but also people employed in it, who were badly hit by two waves of the Covid-19 pandemic. All our properties are abiding by the government safety guidelines and restrictions.”
