New Zealand-based casino operator SKYCITY Entertainment Group announced today that CEO and Managing Director Nigel Morrison is to resign from his posts effective April 29. Mr. Morrison was appointed as CEO of the casino company in March 2008.
Commenting on the announcement, Chris Moller, Chairman of the operator, said in a statement that the casino company’s board has been discussing “succession planning” since last September and that has decided now was the right time for a transition to a new CEO.
Mr. Moller added that Mr. Morrison has done excellent job during his tenure as he secured extensions of the gambling operator’s exclusive casino licenses in Adelaide and Auckland, among other things. SKYCITY’s current CEO is to be succeeded by COO John Mortensen who has been appointed as an interim Chief Executive while a “global search” for a new CEO is carried out.
Mr. Morrison joined New Zealand’s only listed casino company in March 2008. The executive said that this has been an “incredibly demanding job” and that he is glad to be taking a break after eight years on the post. Mr. Morrison further noted that he is leaving the operator in an excellent shape with a record high share price and market capitalization of NZ$3 billion.
Apart from the exclusive license extension, the executive also oversaw the revamp of SKYCITY’s flagship venue in Auckland and the expansion of the company’s business in Australia. Currently, the gambling operator manages four of all six casinos operating in New Zealand – one in Auckland, one in Hamilton, and two in Queenstown. In addition, it also runs two casinos in Australia.
It is also important to note that Mr. Morrison drove SKYCITY’s involvement into the New Zealand International Convention Centre, which is to be developed in Auckland and will cost the casino operator a NZ$500 million investment. The company is also planning to spend about A$300 million to redevelop and upgrade its Adelaide casino.
SKYCITY reported a 30% increase in profit for the first half ended December 31, 2015. It amounted to NZ$71 million and exceeded original expectations. The increase was mainly attributed to a rise in earnings from well-to-do gambling customers from the Asia-Pacific region.
