{"id":5038,"date":"2020-03-31T03:17:10","date_gmt":"2020-03-31T03:17:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/focusgn.com\/asia-pacific\/?p=5038"},"modified":"2026-04-24T06:37:51","modified_gmt":"2026-04-24T09:37:51","slug":"wakayama-open-ir-expo-2025","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/focusgn.com\/asia-pacific\/wakayama-open-ir-expo-2025","title":{"rendered":"Wakayama to open IR before World Expo 2025"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Prefecture launches RFP process and says it plans to open the doors of its first IR within five years. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<!--more-->\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Japan.- <strong><em><a href=\"https:\/\/focusgn.com\/asia-pacific\/?s=wakayama\">Wakayama prefecture<\/a><\/em><\/strong> has started its request-for-proposal (RFP) process that will determine which private operator it will partner with to build an integrated resort should it receive one of three licences on offer. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The prefecture\u2019s operator partner will be officially announced in the autumn and, <strong><em><a href=\"https:\/\/focusgn.com\/asia-pacific\/osaka-open-ir-world-expo-resort\">unlike Osaka<\/a><\/em><\/strong>, Wakayama plans to open its IR ahead of the World Expo in 2025.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cAs long as the national government does not change its schedule, we will proceed on schedule because there will otherwise not be time to make an application to the national government,\u201d Governor Yoshinobu Nisaka said in a press conference.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">According to its announcement, Wakayama said would-be IR operators should develop their resort scheme based on the concept of \u201csports and wellness\u201d by integrating it with Wakayama\u2019s own tourism resources.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">In February, the Wakayama Prefecture presented the local government\u2019s <strong><em><a href=\"https:\/\/focusgn.com\/asia-pacific\/wakayama-ir-policy-draft\">draft integrated resort<\/a><\/em><\/strong> (IR) implementation policy that will allow companies to operate large-scale casinos in the region.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The new policy allows three integrated resorts in the city as part of phase one plans for IRs in the prefecture.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">It also outlines what facilities it expects private-sector partners to provide. This includes making casino resorts distinctive and different from other IRs in Japan.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Among other specific requirements, the casino floor area must not exceed 35 per cent of the total area of the proposed IR.<br><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Prefecture launches RFP process and says it plans to open the doors of its first IR within five years.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"is_press_release":false,"is_interview":false,"is_opinion":false,"focusai_summary":"Wakayama Prefecture has initiated its Request for Proposal (RFP) process to select a private operator for its first Integrated Resort (IR), aiming for an opening within five years. The prefecture's policy mandates a \"sports and wellness\" concept, with casino floor area not exceeding 35% of the total IR footprint, as it seeks one of Japan's three available licenses.","focusai_entities":"Wakayama Prefecture, Yoshinobu Nisaka, Osaka, National Government","focusai_location":"Japan, Wakayama, Osaka","focusai_target_profile":"ceo_executive (0.9), regulator (0.95), compliance_legal (0.9), operator_casino (1.0), investor_analyst (0.9), supplier_vendor (0.75), journalist_researcher (0.9)","focusai_suggestions":[{"label":"IR Operator Selection Criteria?","query":"What are the specific financial, operational, and social contribution criteria Wakayama Prefecture will prioritize in evaluating IR operator proposals, beyond the 'sports and wellness' theme?"},{"label":"National Government Timeline Impact?","query":"How might potential delays or changes in the national government's IR licensing schedule impact Wakayama's aggressive five-year opening target and its competitive positioning against other prefectures like Osaka?"}],"footnotes":""},"categories":[160,28,161,16338,167,158],"tags":[473,470,2131,6427],"class_list":["post-5038","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-asia-pacific","category-casino-news","category-daily-news","category-east-asia-news","category-news-region","category-slider-home","tag-ir","tag-japan","tag-resort","tag-wakayama"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/focusgn.com\/asia-pacific\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5038","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/focusgn.com\/asia-pacific\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/focusgn.com\/asia-pacific\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/focusgn.com\/asia-pacific\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/focusgn.com\/asia-pacific\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=5038"}],"version-history":[{"count":6,"href":"https:\/\/focusgn.com\/asia-pacific\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5038\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":5059,"href":"https:\/\/focusgn.com\/asia-pacific\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5038\/revisions\/5059"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/focusgn.com\/asia-pacific\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=5038"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/focusgn.com\/asia-pacific\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=5038"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/focusgn.com\/asia-pacific\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=5038"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}