The giant Malaysian casino operator, Genting Group, is planning to open a new $4 billion casino on the Las Vegas Strip – the group’s first casino in Sin City in over a decade. The move into Nevada comes as part of Genting’s new major expansion strategy into the US gambling market. The group has invested heavily in states such as Florida, Massachusetts and New York.
Genting’s Vegas casino is scheduled to open its doors in 2020, and will boast around 3,000 rooms. The group is confident that there is place on the Strip for a new, giant casino and hotel, despite the fact that a mega-resort hasn’t opened in the city since 2009. Plans were originally made to break ground on the Las Vegas casino four years ago, but they were put on the side … until now. The Resorts World Las Vegas will be located on the northern end of the Las Vegas Strip.
The President of Genting Americas, Edward Farrell said that the new casino will be the “newest and one of the best offerings out there on the Strip.”
“We want to diversify the portfolio, spread out the risk and be able to leverage international travel by having the right assets in the right cities,” added Farrell in an interview to the Northwest Arkansas Democrat Gazette.
Analysts believe that Las Vegas is on the edge of a growth spurt, with plans to build a $1.7 billion stadium for the National Football League’s Raiders and an expansion of a number of convention centers.
Genting Group owns the Aqueduct Racetrack in Queens which is currently undergoing a major $400 million makeover – including the building of a 400 room hotel, an expanded casino and a new restaurant.
Early next year, Genting plans to open Resorts World Catskills, a 100,000 square foot casino which will boast over 2,000 slot machines and 130 table games. It will also include a 332 room hotel, multiple restaurants, bars, a swimming pool and an entertainment center.
Moving onto Miami, Genting is waiting for lawmakers to decide whether or not they are ready to expand gaming in the city, and let it open a casino at the site of the former Miami Herald. The group is not very optimistic about the plans but have turned down offers to sell the building to potential buyers up until now.
“We have had several opportunities to sell that we have not accepted,” noted a Genting executive. “We are going to hold on to our property and see what happens.”
