Macau is expected to beat Las Vegas at its own game this year and become the world’s biggest gambling market. The Cotai strip will mirror the Las Vegas Strip with casino resorts along its length. Melco International Development Ltd is seeking a loan of some US$130 million to start development of its joint venture casino with Publishing & Broadcasting Ltd (PBL) of Australia. It is estimated that final costs for the project will exceed US$1 billion.

Melco and PBL also have another joint venture project in Macau, at the Park Hyatt Hotel & Casino on Taipa Island. The development on the Cotai strip, a reclaimed stretch of land between Taipa and Coloane, will include luxury apartments, a shopping mall, 2,000 hotel rooms and a 4,000-seat theatre. The casino will house up to 3,000 slot machines and 450 gaming tables. The loan is required to purchase the land from the Macau government and pay a land premium for the resort that is to be called City of Dreams'.

According to Melco’s Managing Director, Lawrence Ho, the casino will be built underwater so that players will be surrounded by marine life. Construction should begin later this year and a completion date is set for the middle of 2008. Other projects for the Cotai strip include the Venetian Macau and Galaxy’s Mega Resort. (E-05.17.05)

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