Lawrence Ho is giving up on his gaming interests in former Soviet Republic Caucasus, Georgia.
Melco International Development Ltd., in a joint statement with its unit MelcoLot Ltd., announced Wednesday that its plan for a casino deal agreement in Georgia will not proceed.
The decision came after MelcoLot failed to reach an agreement with Dhabi Group Georgia LLC on the lease terms, which is a requirement to satisfy a subscription agreement involving Express Wealth Enterprise Ltd, Firich Enterprises Co Ltd and Oz Gaming Georgia LLC.
“Although every effort has been made to negotiate with Dhabi on the lease terms, the parties are unable to reach an agreement on terms satisfactory to MelcoLot. As a result, the conditions precedent to Closing under the Subscription Agreement cannot be satisfied and the transactions contemplated by the Joint Announcement, including the Subscription and the Casino Project, will not now proceed,” said Melco in a filing to the Hong Kong Stock Exchange.
“The Melco Group will continue to explore with Firich on appropriate opportunities for future commercial cooperation.”
MelcoLot announced its Georgia casino venture in November 2014. The deal would have seen MelcoLot sell a part of wholly owned subsidiary Express Wealth, which was set up to hold the license in Georgia, to Firich and Oz Gaming.
MelcoLot is also bidding for a casino license in Spain but the company has warned investors to expect further delays in obtaining a license to operate a casino in Barcelona partly due to political uncertainties.
Melco plans to obtain a license from the Catalan government to develop a hotel and casino complex at BCN World, a project being developed about an hour away from Barcelona in the province of Tarragona. The $6b BCN World resort will feature six casino resorts, hotels, a water park, theme parks, a beach club, shopping malls, restaurants, and a golf course.
