Melco Resorts believes that its Sri Lankan project, in partnership with the John Keells group, can help Sri Lanka be to India what Macau is to China.
Speaking at its latest earnings conference call, Lawrence Ho, our Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, explained that City of Dreams Sri Lanka will be the first integrated resort in Sri Lanka and South Asia and is expected to revolutionize luxury hospitality, entertainment, and leisure in Sri Lanka, presenting an extraordinary architecture and design and a collection of iconic and unparalleled offerings including 800 hotel rooms, retail, food & beverage outlets, MICE facilities, and much more.
Mr. Ho said: “My view is that Sri Lanka can be to India, what Macau is to China. Having looked at the Indian gaming market, I don’t think anything is going to come of it for the next decade or so. And with the rising Indian economy and the wealth creation, Sri Lanka is by far the closest gaming jurisdiction to India. John Keells is one of the it is the biggest list of conglomerates in Sri Lanka with over 150 years of history. The building that they’ve built is truly magnificent. It’s a $1bn building. So I think for us, $125m is a small bet for a potentially huge opportunity. I don’t think there is any published data on the size of the gaming market. So far, there’s two operators in the market with four casinos, but those are all very local.”
“We will be responsible for the fit-out and operations of the casino, which we expect to open in mid-2025, while the City of Dreams Sri Lanka Integrated Resort itself is expected to open in the third quarter of 2024. This is a landmark development in Sri Lanka and we’re thrilled to participate in this opportunity. This is a capital light investment with an attractive return profile, allowing us to expand the City of Dreams brand and broaden our customer reach.
Mr Ho added: “I’m excited to announce that we have hired Tim Kelly as Property President of City of Dreams Macau. Tim was most recently President at Atlantis Global for Kerzner International based in Dubai and has achieved great success in building the Atlantis brand since joining them in 2017. He has a unique blend of skills and experience that we believe positions him perfectly to lead this next chapter of City of Dreams, and I would like to welcome him to the Melco family.”