It's hard to open Osaka IR in 2029 unless government nods soon: MGM

The chief executive of casino operator MGM Resorts International said the group would be "challenged" if "we don't hear from the Japanese authorities in the near future," given its previous ambition to open the Japanese game complex by 2029.

Local partners, including MGM Resorts and Orix, have been selected as the preferred private sector providers for the planned 1.8 trillion yen ($8.25 billion at current exchange rates) casino resort in Osaka.

MGM Resorts CEO and President Bill Hornbuckle gave an update on the timeline of the plan during MGM Resorts' fourth-quarter earnings call on Wednesday.

He also said, "Inflation hasn't affected Japan as it has elsewhere, and the value of the Japanese yen has gone very well for us, especially after our cooperation, but we're still looking at a $10 billion project. We're looking at revenue for that project, and we think we can bring in 15% and cash flow."

Regarding the timing of the project, Mr. Hornbuckle told analysts: "As you may recall, we also submitted an RFP [request for proposals] in Japan about 10 months ago for an integrated resort license to operate in Osaka. Unfortunately, I am still waiting for a response from the government, but we believe we are patient and will hear from it soon."

He said, "We were hoping to hear in October. Obviously, we sat here in February and didn't hear. The process is at MLIT [Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport], a government agency that is constantly asking us today about projects, contracts with the Osaka government, and so on."

"It's time to say whether we can overcome it efficiently over the next 30 days. We want to think and believe that, but we've been thinking that way so far," the executive also said. "If we don't hear from you soon, we'll be challenged to address this before the end of the decade in 2029."

The group has previously said it hopes to hear from the central government of Japan by the fall of 2022 whether it will approve the so-called Integrated Resort (IR) district development plan submitted to authorities in April of that year.

In November, the mayor of Osaka, Ichiro Matsui, said the local authorities, the city and prefecture, were joining forces with the IR slope. Local authorities were asked to submit additional documents explaining how and when they would resolve issues related to their proposal, including Yumeshima in the Gulf of Osaka.

Japan's Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport is a public department overseeing the investigation into casino resort proposals for Nagasaki Prefecture as well as the Osaka plan.

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