Race for Yokohama IR licence heats up as five operators go head-to-head

The request-for-proposal includes two phases with the first phase running from February to May and the second phase in June

On Thursday, the Yokohama prefecture – one of the host cities vying to win one of the three commercial integrated resort (IR) casino licences in Japan – has announced the timeline for its request-for-proposal (RFP) stage which will determine whether the local government will agree to have an integrated resort and casino complex.

The decision is expected to be made in summer which will see a chosen private-sector partner take on the project.

According to media reports, The RFP process includes two phases; the first running from February to May, followed by a second phase between June 1 and June 11. Currently, the RFP stage is open to all interested companies.

The Yokohama authorities specified the requirements about the city’s IR implementation policy which is an essential document for private casino operators to prepare their proposals to send to the city’s authorities.

Local governments must first find a private-sector partner for their IR plans, and then propose the winning submission their scheme to the federal government.

The Metropolis confirmed on Thursday that five out of seven private-sector firms, that had previously expressed their desires for the Yokohama IR licence, have participated in the request-for-concept stage, and those are;

1.  Macau operator Galaxy Entertainment Group Ltd;
2. Genting Singapore Ltd;
3. Melco Resorts and Entertainment Ltd;
4. Sega Sammy Holdings Inc;
5. Japanese group Shotoku Corp.The two US-based groups – Las Vegas Sands Corp and Wynn Resorts Ltd – had announced their withdrawal from Japan’s IR race last year.

Japan has pushed back the timetable under which Japan’s national authorities will start accepting proposals for integrated resorts  – as casino complexes are known in that country – from October 2021. A total of up to three casino resorts will be allowed to open nationally in a first phase of liberalisation.

Source: GGRASIA

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