MGM Osaka
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There is some disagreement about the role of the Osaka IR and it getting national funding which could make life difficult for the resorts plans.

Members of the Osaka city council have come together to establish a group called “No! Osaka IR/Casino” opposing Osaka’s IR bid and vowing to appeal to the central government to deny the prefecture and city’s application.

The group was established with the help of Osaka city council member Hirotoshi Kawashima (LDP) and former Osaka vice governor Tadakazu Konishi. They are calling for the support of local companies and other organizations and plan to submit a written request to the central government around August.

The group maintains, “The Osaka IR/Casino plan has deviated significantly from what it was initially, losing its international competitive edge and failing to comply with the standards stipulated by the national government. There is also a clear issue with the massive public fund injection.

“The national government is adamant that there must be a consensus formed with the local residents but the explanations from Osaka prefecture and city have been inadequate, even leading to a petition with 210,000 signatures directly requesting a referendum, so it can’t be said that the residents’ consent has been obtained.”

The group plans to convey these issues to the national government and request that the [IR] plan is not approved.

Source: https://www.asgam.com/index.php/2022/06/23/anti-ir-group-planning-to-appeal-osaka-ir-plans-to-central-government/

Amazing view from World expo office.

Source: https://www.linkedin.com/posts/davidcohollebeke_osaka-2025-world-expo-amazing-view-from-activity-6917306764455530496-5r9c/?utm_source=linkedin_share&utm_medium=member_desktop_web

On December 21 of the last year "Area Development Plan" for an integrated resort facility was announced. It is planned to launch the project in autumn-winter period of 2029.
The designated area takes about 770,000 square meters. In addition to the casino, facilities such as an international conference hall and exhibition hall, three hotels with the largest number of guest rooms in the city and a theater with a capacity of 3,500 people are being scheduled and planned for construction. More than 20% of all guest rooms of the hotel will be sold as suites.

Around the planned site, soil contamination by arsenic and fluorine has been confirmed and it was determined through excavation investigations that there are layers of soil that may be exposed to the risk of liquefying. The city will have to invest 79 billion yen as expenses for the measures such as disposal of contaminated soil. There will be no public expenses, however. According to the development plan it is estimated that the amount of visitors per year will be 20 million people. The economical result of the Kinki region is estimated to be around 1.14 trillion yen per year. Its expected that Osaka Prefecture will be earning 106 billion yen every year from admission fees etc.

Osaka Prefecture and the city have been putting their focus in cooperation with locally familiar companies such as Kansai Electric Power, Panasonic, Suntory, NTT West, and Kintetsu etc. Around 20 companies will contribute investments for Osaka Integrated resort, a consortium of MGM and Orix Union.

The prefecture and city have agreed on the area development plan and are planning to apply for governmental accreditation around April. It is expected that a maximum of three locations will be selected under the liberalisation programme, but currently, only three regions, Osaka, Wakayama Prefecture, and Nagasaki Prefecture, are preparing for application. The city of Yokohama has withdrawn and the Tokyo Metropolitan Government has suspended the reviewing process. According to the draft plan, business licence will be valid for 35 years with the possibility of being extended for a further 30 years.
Osaka has long been viewed as the front-runner to land one of Japan’s three IR licenses. The central government is currently fielding casino proposals from interested prefectures/cities and their preferred gaming consortiums. The bidding period is to conclude on April 28.

Sources:
https://biz-journal.jp/2022/01/post_276527.html
https://diamond.jp/articles/-/295555
https://www.ggrasia.com/osaka-city-council-votes-against-casino-referendum/
https://www.casino.org/news/osaka-council-votes-against-ir-referendum-bettering-mgm-odds/

Update on construction:

The Osaka prefectural and city governments on Dec. 21 announced a plan for developing a casino-centered integrated resort expected to open in 2029 that will be backed by 20 major companies.

Well-known firms such as Panasonic Corp., Suntory Holdings Ltd. and West Japan Railway Co. will invest in the project, according to the details announced.

The resort is planned to be built on the artificial Yumeshima island in Osaka Bay.

But the city will need to shoulder about 79 billion yen ($692 million) for soil-improvement measures, including site decontamination and control measures against soil liquefaction, according to the plan.

Source: https://www.asahi.com/ajw/articles/14507979

Google Earth images from January 2021 - you can see the solar panels on the island that are shown on the concept images.



Source: Google Earth

American casino glamour mixed with Japanese hospitality. No one and nothing will beat that!

https://www.asgam.com/index.php/2021/09/29/mgm-resorts-unveils-osaka-ir-concept/

MGM Resorts International’s plans to build a $10 billion resort on an artificial island in Japan took another step forward Tuesday. The city and prefecture of Osaka selected MGM, partnered with Japanese financial services company ORIX, to be the region’s integrated resort partner.

Osaka initiated a request for proposals to build a hotel-casino in Yumeshima — the site of the 2025 World Expo — in December 2019. Osaka officials had initially hoped to have a resort built and ready for the 2025 event but abandoned those plans last spring because of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Tuesday’s announcement is one of several steps in the licensing process following the 2018 passage of Japan’s Integrated Resort Implementation Act. The next step is to submit an Area Development Plan to Japan’s central government during the application period (from October of this year to April 2022). Integrated resort licenses are expected to be issued next year. If selected to receive a license, MGM anticipates an opening date in the second half of the 2020s for the Osaka project.

Source: https://www.reviewjournal.com/business/casinos-gaming/mgm-one-step-closer-to-opening-casino-in-japan-2449186/

Status: Announced