Last week, Chile's regulatory organisation, Superintendencia de Casinos de Juego (SCJ), issued a press release with information concerning the country's leading casino operator Enjoy and its decision to relinquish its interest in the projects authorized for investment Grupo Fischer. During last year's gaming licensing process, Grupo Fischer won three out of a possible 15 licenses for its subsidiary companies: Casino de Juego Temuco S.A., Casino de Juego Valdivia S.A., Casino de Juego Punta Arenas S.A.

According to licensing procedure, it fell upon the authorised companies to withdraw the notice served on the SCJ to allow participation in its licensed companies, something that Grupo Fischer had done when it signed the contract to sell Enjoy 10% equiity in its subsidiaries. The companies authorised to operate casinos in Chile according to the 2005 law have been created exclusively for this purpose. Following Enjoy's withdrawal, there is no need for new investigations that could delay the casino construction progress.

Grupo Fischer's investment in the three companies totals US$94.3 million out of the US$607.3 million total investment in the 15 casinos authorised under the new law. Total foreign investment in the new casinos stands at US$329.52 million, just over 54% of the total investment. Last week South Africa's leading casino hotel operator Sun International received approval of their intention to invest in the Casino Mostazal project, the closest to Chile's capital city Santiago, where casinos are not permited. (S-12.17.07)

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