Peermont's Singapore casino bid aims high
April 28, 2005
By Sebastian Tong
Casino and hotel operator Peermont Global was seeking to expand in the US and Middle East after bidding to build a casino resort in Singapore, its chief executive said yesterday. If its bid is successful, the project will be Peermont's costliest yet and its first outside South Africa.
The group might soon seal a deal with a hotel operator in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and had begun talks with a Thai group amid expectations that Thailand would soon legalise casino gambling, said Ernie Joubert.
"We probably would prefer to start with an acquisition in America to get a firm foothold [there] before we move further.
"In the UAE we'll be focused on hotel management projects. In this part of the world, we would favour a casino gaming resort project either here or Macau or China or India," Joubert said.
"Local partnerships are the way to go. It is part of our business model."
Peermont is one of 13 groups competing for contracts to develop two casino resorts in Singapore due to open in 2009, which are expected to be the world's most expensive with a combined value of up to $4 billion (R24 billion).
"In 20 years' time, Peermont will be an international group," said Joubert, who quit rival gaming group Sun International in 1993 to form Peermont, whose $400 million market capitalisation is a third of Sun International's.
Peermont entered the Singapore race late and faces stiff competition including big Las Vegas operators such as Harrah's Entertainment, MGM Mirage, Wynn Resorts and Las Vegas Sands, as well as Sun International.
"I have no problems competing with the bigger companies. South Africa is a small market and we've had to be smarter."
The group is looking for a local majority partner and hopes to take an equity stake of between 5 and 10 percent in the venture, which he said would eventually be listed in Singapore.
Peermont shares have gained 4 percent since Friday, when it was chosen for a second round of bidding in Singapore.
|
|
