Pagcor sees revenues rising to P45.47B in ‘14

MANILA, Philippines - The Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corp. (Pagcor) sees its gross revenues rising to P45.47 billion in 2014 from the projected P42.9 billion this year, largely due to the opening of the first integrated resort in Entertainment City as well as improving operations of existing casinos.

Pagcor president and chief operating officer Jorge Sarmiento said the state gaming regulator remains bullish on the local gaming industry’s prospects given significant contributions from Solaire, which turned in a net profit of P22.7 million in the second quarter, a reversal of the P126.9 million loss incurred in the same period last year.

In the first half, Pagcor generated a net income of P1.4 billion or just five percent shy of its P1.476 billion target for the period.

Revenues amounted to P21.06 billion, slightly lower than the P21.32 billion recorded in the same period in 2012.  The amount, however, exceeded the state-run gaming regulator’s revenue goal of P20.97 billion during the period.

The government’s share from Pagcor’s revenues amounted to P6.97 billion. Under RA 7656, Pagcor is mandated to remit at least 50 percent of its annual revenue to the government.

Pagcor likewise contributed P1.345 billion to the Office of the President’s Social Fund.

Revenues from gaming operations reached P14.73 billion or 3.17 percent higher than agency’s target. Income from other related services, on the other hand, amounted to P5.7 billion while other income stood at P636.22 million.

Pagcor expects to remit around P11.1 billion to the national coffers this year.

Sarmiento said total investments in Entertainment City have reached $1.37 billion as of end-June this year. The future entertainment hub located along Roxas Boulevard, has created 10,300 jobs and attracted 733,200 tourists.