Bloomberry Resorts details plan for Solaire’s expansion

MANILA, Philippines – Bloomberry Resorts Corporation, the leisure and gaming arm of businessman Enrique Razon Jr., announced Thursday, June 5, plans for the second phase expansion of the Solaire Manila Resorts and Casino.

Razon, Bloomberry chairman, said in an interview following the company’s annual stockholders’ meeting that the second phase of Solaire would bigger in terms of size and capital spending compared to the existing development in the area.

“Once the expansion has been completed, Solaire will rank among the largest and most comprehensive integrated resorts in the world,” added Bloomberry president and COO Thomas Arasi.

Apart from the 3 hotels that will feature 1,500 guestrooms, phase 2 of Solaire will include an event area that can accommodate 15,000 people, additional 100,000 sq. m. of MICE (meetings, incentives, conventions and exhibitions) and retail space, 35 new food and beverage outlets, and gaming tables and electronic machines.

By the end of phase 2, Solaire will have a total of 650 gaming tables and 3,000 electronic gaming machines. Construction of Solaire’s phase 2 will depend on market conditions, Razon said.

Bloomberry is set to open phase 1a in the fourth quarter. This phase involves construction of additional 312 all-suite hotel rooms, a shopping center with 30 to 40 high-end brand shops, more food and beverage offerings, a 1,700-seating entertainment theater, 3,000 parking spaces, a night club, and more restaurants. There will also be an additional 220 slot machines and 65 VIP gaming tables.

By the end of phase 1a, Bloomberry would have invested P50.23 billion in Solaire.

Meanwhile, Razon said the company was exploring opportunities to invest in other casino projects overseas, particularly Japan. The company is in talks with Japanese partners to prepare a bid once a gaming law is passed in the country, he said.

Bloomberry reported that its net income totaled P1.46 billion in the first quarter, a sharp turnaround from the P1.05 billion net loss it posted in the same period a year ago.

First-quarter gross revenues totaled P7.38 billion, significantly higher than the P661 million generated in the same period last year.

Solaire is the first casino and gaming firm to open in government-sponsored Entertainment City in the Philippines.

A second casino resort, owned by SM Group’s Belle Corporation and the local unit of Macau’s Melco Crown Entertainment, will open in the third quarter. – Rappler.com