More details about the Republic of Cyprus’ first casino resort emerged from Spectrum Gaming Capital (SGC), the financial advisory firm that advised the preferred developer throughout the bidding process and afterwards.
The New York City-headquartered company has revealed in a recent press release that the €500-million casino complex to be built in the Cypriot city of Limassol would feature a 70,000-square-foot casino with 1,200 slot machines and 130 table games. In addition, there will be a 6,000-square-foot “Casino in the Sky” that will aim to attract VIP players from around the world.
The hotel portion of the resort will offer 500 hotel rooms, as previously announced. As every complex of this kind, that one will, too, provide meeting space for events of different nature. The meeting facility will occupy 42,000 square feet, as revealed by SGC. The resort will also feature 15 different food and beverage facilities as well as a beach club, a large pool, a water park, and a spa.
A consortium formed by casino operators Hard Rock International and Melco International Development and Cypriot company CNS Group won last fall the bid for the construction of Cyprus’ first casino resort.
SGC has been advising CNS Group over the past three years or ever since news spread that the Cypriot government would launch a call for bidding. The New York City-based advisory firm’s work with the Cypriot company involved assisting the latter in creating an adequate development and financing strategy, preparing a study of the status of the casino market, and finding a suitable international partner.
SGC also helped CNS Group and its partners to negotiate the terms of their casino license with the Cypriot government and to attract the attention of international investment banks to finance the Consortium’s casino bid.
The approved group of investors recently signed the necessary license agreement with the government of the Mediterranean island nation, which means that construction work can now begin. It was announced just hours after the license was granted that Hard Rock was pulling out of the joint venture to pursue development opportunities in other jurisdictions.
Thus, Melco International Development acquired a controlling stake in the future casino resort, while CNS Group retained its 29.26% interest. The latter company, which is known to be involved in different industries, including agriculture, exports, and media, provided the site for the future casino resort. As mentioned above, the property will be located in the city of Limassol.
Under the terms of the recently issued casino license, the developers will also build a satellite casino in the Cypriot capital Nicosia and slots-only facilities in Paphos, Larnaca, and Ayia Napa. The main resort is expected to be launched in 2020.
