Melco secures P15B in fresh capital

MANILA, Philippines - The local unit of Macau-based casino giant Melco Crown Entertainment Ltd. has secured P15 billion in fresh capital from the sale of corporate notes.

Proceeds from the company’s second fundraising this year will bankroll the completion of its $1.3-billion integrated casino project.

In a regulatory filing, listed Melco Crown (Philippines) Resorts Corp. said its subsidiary MCE Leisure (Philippines) Corp. priced its senior notes offered to limited investors through a private placement.

“The notes offering consists of P15-billion ($340-million) aggregate principal amount of five-percent senior notes due 2019,” Melco Philippines said.

“MCE Leisure intends to use the net proceeds from the offering for capital expenditure, refinancing of debt and general corporate purpose,” it added.

Nineteen primary institutional lenders joined the private offering, Melco Philippines said, adding that the corporate notes will be issued in January next year subject to customary closing conditions.

It is the second fundraising program of Melco Philippines this year. In April, the company secured $377 million through a share sale that was more than six times oversubscribed by 140 investors.

The $1.3-billion City of Dreams Manila will start commercial operations in July next year with 365 gaming tables, 1,680 slot machines and 1,680 electronic table games. Previously, the casino planned to offer only 242 gaming tables and 1,450 electronic gaming machines.

Melco Crown is banking on attracting its wide network of Asian high rollers for its first project outside Macau.

The casino owner and operator operates the City of Dreams and Altira Macau casinos. It is also building its third casino, Studio City, that will open in 2015.

City of Dreams Manila is the first gaming venture of the Sy family, whose flagship company SM Investments Corp. is involved in five core businesses - retail, mall operations, property, banking and hotel and leisure.

City of Dreams Manila will be the second casino complex to open Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corp.’s (Pagcor) 120-hectare Entertainment City, which is groomed to become the Philippines’ version of the Las Vegas strip. In March, port mogul Enrique Razon opened the $1.2-billion Solaire Casino & Resort.

Pagcor forecasts that gambling revenues in the Philippines will grow from $1.3 billion in 2011 to at least $10 billion by 2017 coming from the operations of the four gaming giants in Entertainment City.