Gambling giant MGM Mirage and a British developer announced plans Monday to build casinos in three United Kingdom cities and an entertainment complex in a fourth. Las Vegas-based MGM Mirage and Manchester-based Peel Holdings PLC put the value of the developments in Manchester, Salford, Glasgow and Liverpool at $1.1 billion.
Each project depends on local governmental approval and changes in British gambling laws, MGM Mirage spokesman Alan Feldman said. "We wanted to make our interests known now, so that the planning boards could contemplate the form and substance of these developments," Mr Feldman said. The companies said they have submitted a formal expression of interest to build an MGM Mirage casino and entertainment complex at Sportcity in East Manchester adjacent to Manchester Stadium. In Salford, they said they are asking the City Council to let them build a casino, hotel and 20,000-seat sports stadium.
A planned development of Peel Holdings land known as Glasgow Harbour would include an MGM Mirage casino and related facilities on 125 acres, and a formal expression of interest to the Liverpool City Council would develop land known as the King's Waterfront. "All of the projects that we have announced today, and others that we are still exploring, have the potential to result in unprecedented levels of inward investment, jobs and tourism for each of the locations we have chosen," Lloyd Nathan, MGM Mirage managing director for Europe, said in a statement.
John Whittaker, chairman of Peel Holdings, said combining his company's land holdings and MGM Mirage's experience building entertainment and gambling resorts was "the ideal partnership to bring the best possible gaming experience to the UK." Marc Falcone, a Deutsche Bank gambling analyst, said Monday the deal makes sense given MGM Mirage's overall strategy in the United Kingdom. "In our view, this could be MGG's most significant announcement to date in the UK," Mr Falcone said. "However, it still remains unclear whether or not there will be a cap on the number of resort or destination casinos, which will ultimately determine the magnitude of growth we can expect from the company's announcements."
MGM Mirage has also bid $558 million to acquire London-based Wembley PLC, operator of greyhound tracks in Wimbledon, Manchester, Birmingham, Oxford and Portsmouth in the United Kingdom, plus a Rhode Island dog racing track and video slot center and race tracks in Colorado. That deal still needs approval from Wembley shareholders and regulatory agencies, and is subject to reorganization of the Lincoln Park track in Rhode Island. MGM Mirage also has a 25 percent interest in British casino developer Metro Casinos Ltd.
In February, MGM Mirage announced plans to build a hotel-casino next to the Meadowhall Shopping Center in Sheffield, one of the U.K.'s largest retail centers. The agreement with The British Land Company PLC calls for construction of a $364 million to $455 million casino, restaurant and entertainment complex to be operated by MGM Mirage.
SOURCE: Associated Press.
