Bloomberry grooming Solaire into one of world’s top casino resorts

MANILA, Philippines - Bloomberry Resorts Corp. aims to be one of the world’s largest and most comprehensive integrated resorts as it charts a new expansion plan for Solaire Resort & Casino.

Solaire’s second phase will feature new hotel towers, an events area, a convention center, more retail space, and additional gaming tables and machines, company executives said yesterday.

“Planning has begun for further expansion of the resort, which is expected to include three new hotel towers with 1,500 additional guest rooms, an events arena capable of accommodating up to 15,000 people, approximately 100,000 square meters (sqm) of additional meetings, incentives, conventions and exhibits (MICE) and retail space, approximately 35 new food and beverage outlets, and additional gaming positions,” said Bloomberry president and chief operating officer Thomas Arasi.

It will bring the total number of table games and gaming machines to around 650 and 3,000, respectively.

“Once this expansion has been completed, Solaire will rank among the largest and most comprehensive integrated resorts in the world,” Arasi said during the company’s annual stockholders’meeting.

He said the facilities and amenities at Solaire are already comparable to other integrated resorts in Macau, Singapore and other parts of the world.

Construction of the new phase of Solaire will depend on market conditions, said Enrique K. Razon Jr., chairman and CEO of Solaire owner and operator Bloomberry.

Bloomberry is undertaking a $500-million Phase 1A expansion that includes a 312-room all-suite boutique hotel, a retail promenade anchored on 40 luxury brand shops, a 1,700-seat performance theatre, more food and beverage offerings, a nightclub, KTV, whisky bar, spa, gym and salon.

“Work is in full swing, and we are set to open in the fourth quarter, on time and on budget,” Razon said, adding there will also be 220 more slot machines and 65 VIP gaming tables in the casino project.

“The projected gaming and non-gaming traffic is expected to be amply provided for with new parking facilities with approximately 3,100 parking spaces,” he added.

Upon completion of Phase 1 and Phase 1A, Bloomberry will have invested P50.91 billion. As of end-2013, Bloomberry had invested P33.6 billion in Solaire, which currently offers 488 rooms, 18,500 sqm of gaming space, 15 luxurious dining options, 1,200 slot machines and 295 gaming tables.

“By our own merits, we forged agreements with Macau VIP junket operators. We likewise intensified our marketing for premium direct VIP players,” Razon said.

In its first 10 months of operation, Solaire had signed up about 50 junket operators to bring in foreign VIP players. The mass gaming player sign-ups also reached 256,000 in 2013 while total visitation for the year hit the three million mark.

Razon said the share of junket operators in the company’s revenues will likely jump to 70 percent given the Phase 1A expansion from the current 51 percent.

Bloomberry recorded P1.46 billion in net income in the first quarter, turning around from a P1.05-billion net loss a year ago due to robust revenues and efficient operations despite the absence of a third-party management company.

The casino hotel, which started operations in March last year, is situated in Entertainment City, a 120-hectare property reclaimed from Manila Bay and owned by the state-run Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corp.