According to the ministry, the Covid-19 outbreak has affected casino business, so the pilot time period was shortened and results have been below expectations. 

Therefore, it has asked the Politburo and the government to extend the pilot program by two years. The extension will not be applied in other localities, except for Phu Quoc and Van Don.

MOF has also updated information about the performance of some resort projects with a casino. In principle, only projects with investment capital of $2 billion or higher will get licenses.

Regarding the resort and entertainment complex in Cam Ranh in Khanh Hoa province, MOF said in 2019, on the basis of the proposal from the Ministry of Planning and Investment (MPI), the Prime Minister agreed in principle on the development of a casino there with total investment capital of VND46.371 trillion. 

The project includes a hotel, villas, golf course, shopping center, park, entertainment area with casino in investment phases 1 and 2. The investor is KN Cam Ranh Co Ltd. The investment duration is 70 years.

Under Decree 03/2017, there must be no more than 200 gaming tables and 2,000 machines. The project is scheduled to become operational in 2025. As the project is still under construction, MOF still has not granted the certificate on meeting the requirements to run a casino business.

As for Laguna Lang Co in Lang Co, Thua Thien - Hue province, the Prime Minister in 2018 approved investment in the project capitalized at VND45.103 trillion. 

The project includes a hotel, villas, casino, shopping mall, international conference complex, entertainment and water park area. The investor is Laguna Co Ltd in which ENDA PTE from Singapore holds 100 percent of capital. 

A report from the Thua Thien - Hue provincial authorities shows that the project became operational in 2013, creating 1,300 jobs.

Under the initial plan, the second phase of the project would be operational in 2021 as shown in the investment registration certificate. 

However, because of Covid-19, the negotiations to choose partners and the establishment of joint ventures with partners have been delayed. The accumulated investment capital of phases 1 and 2 is $260 million, not enough to be eligible to run a casino business.

A high-end entertainment complex with a casino in Van Don, Quang Ninh province has total initial investment capital of VND47.482 trillion, covering an area of 2,535.92 hectares. The investor is Sun Group.

According to the Quang Ninh People’s Committee, the project got the nod from the Politburo in 2013, but still has not received the agreement on investment because of several problems. 

Duy Anh