Nagasaki pushes ahead with IR plans

Despite the central government already announcing a delay, Nagasaki is still pushing its IR plans and setting further meetings to discuss them.

Japan.- The Japanese casino industry will eventually launch but it’s still unknown as to when. Even as the central government has delayed its regulation Nagasaki is pushing its integrated resort (IR) plans ahead.

The Prefecture launched the first meeting of an Experts Committee on Wednesday evening. Nine experts held their meeting at the Nagasaki Prefectural Headquarters building.  They are expected to hold two or three other meetings during this fiscal year.

Nagasaki’s plans

Many Japanese regional governments are looking into the potential development of an integrated resort (IR) within their jurisdiction as the central government sets the final regulations required. Nagasaki is one of the prefectures studying the possibility and has announced it would open its doors by the end of 2024, should it get a licence.

The prefectural government’s IR Promotion Office made the announcement before the prefectural assembly and revealed it would establish a “review committee” shortly after the IR guidelines are published. The committee would be integrated by ten legal and financial experts who would select the prefecture’s operator partner.

There are about twenty operators interested in bidding for a project, the Nagasaki government says. One operator in particular is potentially interested in investing €3.2 billion in a Huis Ten Bosch-linked development.