Seven companies had submitted their respective bids for the government’s upcoming granting of up to six gaming concessions before the public tender’s submission deadline at 5:45 p.m. yesterday, comprising the city’s current six gaming operators and a newcomer.

The newcomer is GMM Limited, which is linked to Malaysia’s Genting Group.

The up to six concessions, which are slated to start operating on January 1 next year, will have a duration of 10 years.

Currently, Macau’s gaming industry comprises three concessions (SJM, Galaxy, and Wynn) and three sub-concessions (MGM, Sands, and Melco). The three concessionaires sold one sub-concession each.

Macau’s new gaming industry law, which was promulgated earlier this year, expressly bans the granting of sub-concessions.

The new gaming law stipulated that the government can grant up to six gaming concessions by public and open tender for 10 years, with a possible extension of up to three years in exceptional circumstances.

Macau’s current three gaming concessions and three sub-concessions will expire on December 31.

The Macau government launched its international tender for up to six gaming concessions, on July 29.

A Macau Government Information Bureau (GCS) statement yesterday evening announced that before the tender’s submission deadline at 5:45 p.m. yesterday, a total of seven companies had submitted their respective bids. According to the statement, the seven bidders, by order of submission time, were Wynn Resorts (Macau) Limited; Venetian Macau Limited; Melco Resorts (Macau) Limited; SJM Resorts, Limited; MGM Grand Paradise Limited; Galaxy Casino Company Limited; and GMM Limited.

Venetian Macau Limited is a company registered in Macau that runs Sands China casinos here.

The Macau government set up a nine-member committee on July 27 to oversee the bidding process for the granting of future gaming concessions.

Members of the committee include three of the Macau Special Administrative Region’s (MSAR) five policy secretaries: Secretary for Administration and Justice André Cheong Weng Chon, Secretary for Economy and Finance Lei Wai Nong, and Secretary for Social Affairs and Culture Elsie Ao Ieong U. The committee is headed by Cheong.

Yesterday’s GCS statement also said that the committee, officially known as the Gaming Concession Public Tender Committee, will unseal the seven submitted bids at 10 a.m. tomorrow, when the committee’s members, representatives from the Public Prosecutions Office (MP), and representatives from the seven bidders will attend the session at the committee’s office, which is located on the 21^st floor of China Plaza in Nam Van.

Representatives from Wynn Resorts (Macau) Limited submitted the company’s bid on Tuesday, while representatives from the other six bidders submitted their respective bids yesterday.

Freshness

Speaking to reporters after submitting their bid at the Gaming Concession Public Tender Committee’s office yesterday evening, GMM representatives confirmed that the company is linked to Malaysia’s Genting Group.

GMM representatives said that the company is confident that it would win a future concession when the Macau government grants the new gaming concessions.

The GMM representatives said that the company expects its participation in the Macau government’s gaming concession bidding process to bring freshness to Macau’s gaming industry.

The GMM representatives also noted that the Genting Group currently runs gaming and resort businesses in various places worldwide such as Las Vegas, New York, Malaysia, Singapore, and Egypt.

6 current operators’ remarks

In their respective statements yesterday, Melco, and Sands China underlined their respective commitments to helping Macau meet its economic diversification goals, while SJM underlined its commitment to contributing to Macau’s prosperous and sustainable development.

Speaking to reporters after submitting their respective bids yesterday, MGM representatives said that the company started preparing for the bidding process a year ago, while Galaxy representatives said that the company will strive to attract more foreign customers in the future.

Wynn Resorts (Macau) Limited also confirmed its bid submission in a statement on Tuesday. 

Three GMM Limited representatives pose with two boxes of gaming concession bidding documents outside the Gaming Inspection and Coordination Bureau (DICJ) in China Plaza in Nam Van yesterday, one box of originals and the other of copies. – Photo: MPDG