Operators for nine of the 16 licences available in Chile have been named by Deputy Finance Minister Maria Olivia Recart in her capacity as President of the Casino Licensing Commission. The announcement came yesterday, 19 days before the selection deadline of 1 August. The winners and losers will doubtless cause plenty of comment in due course, particularly as Spanish operating giant CIRSA has not been named.

Two companies that have done extremely well, the Fischer Group and the Martinez family’s Enjoy, are Chilean. Fischer has been awarded 3 licences, in the cities of Temuco, Valdivia and Punta Arenas. Enjoy, which already operates 4 casinos in Chile including Viña del Mar, has been awarded the licence for Antofagasta. Viña del Mar and Antofagasta are considered by many to be two of the most lucrative casino locations. The other winners are Spanish Egasa-Nervion, Polaris with Casinos Austria, Panamanian Latin Gaming, local JL Giner, and consortium Valmar with Peruvian and US capital.

Still to be awarded are licences for developments in Calama, la Quinta, Sexta and Septima Regions. CIRSA, which submitted applications for seven cities including the yet to be licensed Calama, has said it will respect the decision of the judges but is disappointed that the award of licences has not taken into consideration the aspects it considers essential for the birth of a transparent, competitive and international-level casino industry. The Spanish company has been in dispute with the Martinez family over comments made by their lawyer over alleged money laundering connections. (E-07.14.06)

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