by Muhammad Cohen
Macau on the Mekong
L
egal casinos in the mainland are the single biggest threat to Macau’s position as the world’s premiere gaming destination. That is unlikely to happen in the foreseeable future but the next closest thing is taking shape
right now in Laos. Mainland owned and operated casinos in two special economic zones (SEZs) in northern Laos target mainland gamblers. New roads connect the casinos to the mainland and a high-speed railway is in the works. Each casino is controlled by a different consortium and both claim to be the first step in ambitious plans to create destination resorts alongside industrial and agricultural projects in an investor-friendly, tax-free environment, supported by both governments. “The basic slogan of investing in SEZs is ‘you
invest, we welcome; you make fortune, we make development’,” according to Golden Triangle Special Economic Zone chairman Zhao Wei. His Hong Kong-registered Kings Romans Group, known as Dokngiewkham in Chinese, opened the Kings Romans casino in December in Ton Pheung, next to the Thai border. It is connected to the mainland and Yunnan province capital Kunming by a new road. It is accessible from Thailand by ferry across the Mekong River. A bridge spanning the river is due for completion in 2013, extending the expressway to Bangkok.
Chinese-run casinos in Laos give mainland gamblers an atmosphere that’s just like home, just over the border. They could threaten Macau, except for one key ingredient
Half a billion “Macau on the Mekong”, the Kings Romans has 150
tables and 170 electronic gaming machines on a 15,000 square metre gaming floor, according to Kings Romans executive E. Abbas. The group says it has spent US$500 million (MOP4 billion) in the SEZ so far. Nightclubs, karaoke lounges, saunas and shops surround a four-star hotel. Two more are planned, for a total of about 1,200 rooms. On the border with Yunnan province, the Boten Golden City casino in the Royal Jinlun Hotel opened late in 2007 with 150 gaming tables and 300 machines, plus a sports book with live telecasts. The hotel has about 300 rooms, with more on the way. The SEZ admits mainland tourists without a visa.
The Lao village previously on the site was moved about 20 km to facilitate the new development. It emphasises and exacerbates the zone’s isolation from Laos. “Revenue derived from Laos is not significant,”
according to a statement from RGB International, which operates gaming machines in Ton Pheung. “However, we would like to explore it more in the years to come.”
On a good month, gaming revenue from each
casino reaches US$10 million. They pay minimal tax, offer strong incentive deals to junket operators and the SEZ status grants them virtual autonomy to write their own rules. Both casinos do a healthy business in
22 APRIL 2011
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