Eight areas in Japan want to host IRs
The Tourism Minister of Japan has revealed that eight areas in Japan are considering bidding to host casino resorts in the country.
US.- Japanese Tourism Minister Kazuyoshi Akaba hosted a news conference on Tuesday where he confirmed that eight areas in the country are interested in bidding to host an integrated resort (IR).
Akaba cited the results of a survey conducted by the Japan Tourism Agency, Japan Times confirmed. The eight areas are Tokyo, Yokohama, Hokkaido, Osaka, Nagoya, Chiba, Wakayama Prefecture and Kagasaki Prefecture. The survey started on September 9 and finished on September 23.
The Tourism Agency said that it will interview officials from the eight areas to confirm the status of their operations. The local governments interested in hosting an IR must file their plans for state approval.
Another survey carried out by Jiji Press said that Kawasaki and Hamamatsu also aim to host an integrated resort. The news agency conducted the survey between early August and September.
IRs in Japan to generate GGR of more than US$10 billion
Fitch Ratings has released a new report on the upcoming casino industry in Japan. The agency says that integrated resorts (IRs) in Japan will generate annual gross gaming revenue (GGR) of around US$10 billion. Fitch also said that the ten-year licence renewal is an obstacle to securing bank financing.
The new estimate of US$10 billion is US$3 billion higher than the previous GGR estimations from Fitch. If Japan features one regional and two metropolitan IRs, Fitch is positive on the 3% cap on casino floor space. “This greater freedom will come from the considerable size of the total investments planned and the measurement methodology of the casino area, which excludes walkways and casino floor amenities (similar to Singapore),” the report says.
“We assume about 6,000 slots and 700 tables at each at the major resorts with win/unit/day similar to that of Marina Bay Sands (US$792 for slots and US$9,563 for tables in 2018),” said Fitch.
