Casinos were illegal in Japan for many years, but the country now has official approval and concrete plans for a mega gambling resort in the western city of Osaka.
Officials in the country have reportedly approved plans for the construction of the resort aiming to attract more foreign tourists to the country.
As such, the casino resort is expected to open in 2029.
More about the casino in Japan
What will the casino resort include?
The plan to build the casino resort was formally approved by Japan’s Land, Infrastructure and Transport Minister Tetsuo Saito. Its opening will come four years after the World Expo in Osaka.
The complex will be spread in an area of 49 hectares and will also have a hotel, a theatre, an exhibition hall and conference facilities besides the casino. It will be created on an artificial island.
How much will the project cost and what will be the revenue?
According to Associated Press (AP), the project will cost an estimated USD 8 billion.
American casino operator MGM Resorts International and Japan’s Orix Group would each own a 40 per cent stake in the company, while the remaining 20 per cent will be held by an assortment of local Japanese companies including West Japan Rail, Kansai Electric Power and Panasonic.
The casino resort will be operated by Osaka IR KK, a company established by the stakeholders.
The estimated revenue from the project will be USD 3.9 million annually, with visitor numbers expected to be around 20 million.
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What has the government said about the project?
At a meeting of the government’s IR (integrated resort) promotion panel, Prime Minister Fumio Kishida underlined the economic impact of the casino resort to the country.
“It is expected to contribute to the local economy and the economic growth of all of Japan after the Osaka-Kansai Expo and become a tourism hub for transmitting the charms of Japan,” Kishida was quoted as saying by AP.
He also said that he expects that the casino will become a tourism base that would help promote “Japan’s charms to the world.”
Apart from Osaka, Japan’s Nagasaki prefecture has also submitted a plan to build a casino at Huis Ten Bosch theme park.
(Main and Featured images: Nomadic Julien/@nomadicjulien/Unsplash)
This story first appeared on Lifestyle Asia Singapore
