Six authorized casino operators in Macau are likely to find new players in the game as their concessions are due to expire in either 2020 or 2022. The Government of Macau will be holding the cards to itself for the time, related to renewal of concessions, said the Lionel Leong Vai Tac, who is Macau Secretary for Economy and Finance.
Macau’s secretary – whose profile covers the regulatory role over the gaming sector – asserted the government will not overlook the possibility of increasing the competition in the gaming industry across the region.
Mr Leong, while responding to a question in ‘Question and Answer session’ at a plenary sitting of Macau Legislative Assembly, said, “We can’t forget that the gaming sector is predominant [in Macau’s economy], and to guarantee its sustainable development we need to pay close attention to international competition.”
The official iterated that the too early announcement of the rules for renewal of concession, would allow other jurisdictions to adjust their gaming regulations accordingly, which will result in “more severe” competition.
“Before we announce the new rules, we need to think about the appropriate time to do so, in order to guarantee the sustainable development of the [gaming] sector,” Mr Leong added.
Macau’s Chief Executive, Fernando Chui Sai On, said that mid of 2018 will be an “appropriate” time to share the details for renewal or extension of gaming rights for current Macau’s operators and their subcontractors.
One of the key players, SJM Holdings Ltd Executive Director, Angela Leon On Kei said that the government should announce the changes in the regulations for concession so that the process could run plain for all the parties.
The government can only renew the existing contracts for a maximum period of 5 years, according to the law that governs Macau gaming. But after the expiry of concession contract, the new concession contract can only be granted through a public tender.
Nomura Holdings Incorporation on Monday asserted that the concession talk will add diversity to the gaming sector in 2018 as debate is to set off next year after government announcement.
The Secretary, Mr Leong, on Thursday added that non-gaming revenue generates 10.7 percent of the casino sector overall revenue.
The Macau Five-Year Development Plan was set to achieve the target of non-gaming revenue to 9 percent of the casino sector by 2020, which was met in 2015 is considerably increasing with time.
