Pagcor still considering Universal deadline extension request

Tuesday 28th of July 2015

The Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corp. is still considering a request from Japan’s Universal Entertainment to extend the deadline for completion of its planned resort in Manila’s Entertainment City, Reuters reported.

The company risks having its license for the $1.6 billion project suspended because of the delays.

“They want to have an extension. We are looking into it,” Cristino Naguiat, chairman of Pagcor, told Reuters in an interview.

The official said Pagcor was still in deliberations on a possible permit suspension for Universal’s Tiger unit. The firm was working to submit documents in a few weeks to prevent the licence being frozen, he said.

Pagcor wants Tiger to submit a bank guarantee for the $800 million it says is needed to complete the 44-hectare Manila Bay Resorts, Naguiat said.

Tiger must also pay a new bond of $2.2 million to extend its project’s timeline, Naguiat said. “Unless you show there’s money coming, that is the only time I will believe the project will continue,” Naguiat said.

Reuters reported that Pagcor is also waiting for the Philippine Justice Department’s opinion on whether a deal in May by Universal Entertainment to sell its stake in a company owning the land on which the casino resort is being built means Tiger has complied with land ownership rules.

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