Star plans new tower to rival Packer’s Barangaroo project in Sydney

Saturday 2nd of January 2016

The Star Entertainment Group, formerly known as Echo Entertainment, plans to build a 200-meter luxury hotel tower at its Sydney property in an attempt to tap demand from wealthy Chinese travellers.

The company, along with its partners Chow Tai Fook and Far East Consortium have already submitted a plan to the New South Wales government, local media reported.

"The affluent Chinese middle class is on the rise and looking further afield. There's an opportunity to capture some of that. In Sydney, occupancy rates at the high-end are at spillover capacity. There's certainly demand that requires additional supply," The Sydney Morning Herald cited a company spokesman as saying.

The company has said it's in talks to lure the luxury Ritz-Carlton brand to the site. The Ritz-Carlton tower is expected to be located at the northern end of The Star's inner-city Pyrmont casino complex and will boost the casino's accommodation offering beyond 1000 rooms.

Star, Chow Tai Fook and Far East are already working together to redevelop the Queen’s Wharf in downtown Brisbane in Queensland.

An upgrade to the Sydney property would also help the company to compete in the city with Crown Resorts, which is building a new VIP-only resort at Barangaroo.

However, the report cited the Star spokesman as saying the company would have upgraded its Sydney casino and hotel complex, to match the Brisbane resort, regardless of whether or not James Packer had a rival casino in Sydney.

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