The Solaire Resort and Casino in Manila, owned by Bloomberry Resorts Corp., wants its own cruise port. According to a filing submitted to the Philippine Stock Exchange (PSE) yesterday, Sureste Properties Inc, a Bloomberry subsidiary, has submitted an application with the Tourism Infrastructure and Enterprise Zone Authority (TIEZA) to construct the port, located at Entertainmnet City in Paranaque City, Manila.
Reports first surfaced last week of the port, with media outlets stating that a Bloomberry subsidiary was planning on building a $5.9-million cruise port in Paranaque City. Bloomberry has now clarified the purpose of the port in submitting the filing with the PSE.
The port would offer marine and terminal facilities, port-of-call and homeport operations and an expanded harbor area with dining, entertainment, shopping and maritime recreational facilities. The project is anticipated to have a first phase complete within two years and the entire project would be operational within 10 years.
TIEZA has presented the project to President Duterte’s office for its review. In a statement provided by TIEZA, “President Duterte expressed no objection to the proposal subject to the compliance of all government required permits and environmental clearances.” Apart from the president’s approval, Bloomberry has indicated that the project still requires “several other regulatory approvals and compliance including an Environmental Compliance Certificate (ECC).”
Bloomberry is controlled by Filipino billionaire magnate Enrique Razon. In addition to being the head of Bloomberry, Razon is the CEO and chairman of one of the country’s largest companies, International Container Terminal Services, Inc. (ICTS). ICTS develops, manages and operates container terminals and ports in countries across the globe.
Bloomberry has had an incredible year so far, seeing profits increase by 72.7% year-on-year. In the first quarter of 2018, it reported earnings of $71.2 million, up from $40 million in the same quarter last year. Solaire Resort and Casino, the company’s flagship property, brought in the greatest profit, reporting an increase of 43.1% over the same period last year. Razon said of the results, “We are off to a good start. Our fundamentals are solid, our cost optimisation initiatives are working, so we should be on track to making this a banner year.”
Due in part to the company’s success, Sureste announced in April that it would be purchasing two plots of land where the casino is located. The properties are owned by the Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corp. (PAGCOR), which was paid $713 million for the property.
