Melco Resorts & Entertainment said in a statement yesterday that it will discontinue its pursuit of a casino-hotel integrated resort development in Yokohama.
However, the company headed by Lawrence Ho Yau Lung said it remained “committed to Japan and will continue to explore development opportunities in the country.”
“For the past several years, we have worked with our partners to devise a superlative, world-class IR proposal that reflects the unique characteristics and culture of Yokohama and which would put the city on the global stage of tourism. Our proposal was focused on the Asian premium segment, our devotion to quality and craftsmanship, and our dedication to creating a world-class entertainment destination. We designed this resort in a way that reflected Melco’s focus on quality, demonstrating a respectful approach to partnership, developing the most advanced protection measures in the world, and with stringent ethical business conduct during the process,” the statement quoted Ho, chairman and CEO of Melco Resorts & Entertainment, as saying.
“Unfortunately, the citizens of Yokohama have decided otherwise, and the mayoral election results give a clear verdict. The new mayor, having campaigned on an anti-integrated resort platform, has now closed the door on the process we engaged in with our partners. While we are disappointed, we are grateful for the friendships that we have formed throughout the process and express our sincere gratitude to the people and government of Yokohama, as well as our business and community partners, for their tremendous support,” Ho said.
“Melco has been working on the ground in Japan for over a decade. We firmly believe in the country’s long-term potential and remain committed to exploring opportunities to develop the world’s best integrated resort in Japan. We will be closing our Yokohama office while maintaining a representative office in Tokyo,” Ho said.
Melco operates the City of Dreams and Studio City hotel-casino integrated resorts, Altira casino hotel and Mocha slot-machine parlours in Macau. It also runs casinos in the Philippines and Cyprus.
