Ho companies buy into Russian casino resort

Companies controlled by Lawrence Ho Yau-lung, a son of Macau gaming mogul Stanley Ho Hung-sun, will invest HK$514.1 million in a 51 per cent stake in a casino resort in Russia which will have a total investment budget of HK$1 billion.

Last Friday, two Hong Kong-listed firms controlled by Lawrence Ho - Melco International Development and Summit Ascent - entered into an agreement to invest in 51 per cent of Hong Kong company Oriental Regent, which owns a casino resort in Primorye, Russia.

The casino was under construction and had a planned total investment of US$130 million, the two firms said yesterday.

Summit Ascent will invest two billion roubles (HK$463.7 million) for a 46 per cent stake in Oriental Regent, while Melco will pay 216.7 million roubles for a 5 per cent interest.

The casino resort sits on a 90,455 square metre plot and will have a planned gross floor area of 31,630 sq metres. It will have 119 hotel rooms, 800 slot machines, 25 VIP gaming tables and 40 mass market gaming tables, and is expected to open in September next year.

"The casino resort has the advantage of being geographically close to the target feeder markets, the three Chinese provinces in northeastern China, namely Heilongjiang, Jilin and Liaoning," said Summit Ascent, which invests in property and supplies building equipment.