MGM awaiting Cotai land concession

The company’s president Grant Bowie made the remark last Friday at the Macau property. “We have made it clear we want to have an opportunity in Cotai,” Bowie told the reporters, adding “we’re working with the Government” in order to achieve the goal. He also stressed that at present MGM Macau’s financial status is “safe and secure”, meaning that the company is ready to expand its presence from the Macau peninsula to the Cotai Strip.

Secretary for Transport and Public Works Lau Si Io disclosed at the Legislative Assembly on August 2 that three gaming operators’ development projects covering a total area of 340,000 square metres in Cotai are awaiting the Government’s formal land grant approval.
Lau said that applications were lodged either in 2006 or 2007, but declined to name the three companies.

Bowie refused to say whether MGM was one of the land applicants, but confirmed that they submitted a proposal to the Government requesting a land concession in Cotai in 2007.
He did not elaborate further on the exact location of the land that MGM is eyeing, but he did say that they did not see Macau Studio City land as “an option right now because it is owned by someone else”.

If the Cotai land is approved, Bowie said MGM’s plan is to build a “high-end integrated resort”, which, besides gaming, will also bring in a wide range of businesses such as conventions, medical tourism, entertainment and retail.