$2-B megacasino project in Entertainment City Century Properties links up with Okada

MANILA, Philippines - Japanese gaming tycoon Kazuo Okada has found a new Filipino partner to handle the residential component of his $2-billion megacasino project in Pagcor’s Entertainment City in Parañaque.

His new partner, Century Properties Group of the Antonio family, has thus gained a foothold in the residential phase of the gaming hub.

In a regulatory filing, Century Properties said it signed yesterday a memorandum of agreement with Eagle 1 Landholdings Inc. to develop five hectares of land within the 44-hectare site to be known as Manila Bay Resorts.

“On the five-hectare site, Century Properties will develop luxury residential and retail properties that will total over 300,000 square meters (sqm) of gross floor area upon completion,” the company said.

Eagle 1 is the Philippine affiliate of Okada’s Universal Entertainment Corp., which is listed in the Tokyo Stock Exchange.

The real estate firm said it also entered into “an investment agreement with Eagle 1 whereby Century Properties will be issued with 432 million preferred shares representing 36 percent of Eagle 1’s pro forma capital stock.”

The landholding company of Okada has been looking for a local partners to resolve issues on foreign ownership cap.

“Closing of both the memorandum of agreement for the five-hectare site and investment agreement for Eagle 1 shall occur upon satisfaction of legal and regulatory requirements, and neither transactions contemplate Century being involved in any aspect of the gaming operations,” Century Properties said.

The property firm said the move is a strategic fit for its business given its long-standing track record in the Philippine real estate industry. With 28 years in the business of real estate development, marketing and property management, Century Properties has transformed 744,576 sqm. of space into premier residential and office developments in and outside Metro Manila.

Universal Entertainment secured in September a favorable opinion from the Philippines’ Economic Zone Authority (PEZA) for its $2-billion integrated casino project along Manila Bay. PEZA said Universal’s Tiger Resorts & Leisure Corp. obtained a license as a locator without any irregularities.

Okada’s Tiger Resorts ended its partnership with Gokongwei-led Robinsons Land Corp. to jointly develop the hotel and casino complex in May.

Okada holds one of four licenses to operate a casino complex in the 120-hectare Entertainment City, which is being groomed as the Philippines’ answer to gaming hubs in Singapore, Las Vegas and Macau.

In March, port mogul Enrique Razon opened the $1.2-billion Solaire Resort and Casino while SM Group’s Belle Corp. and Macau casino giant Melco Crown Entertainment Ltd. will start commercial operations of the $1.3-billion City of Dreams Manila mid next year.