At some 80 kilometres from the city of Huesca in Aragon lies the locality of Ontiñena with a population of 621. A castle built in pre Roman times used by the Moors and afterwards by the Knights Templar, a thirteenth century church and Roman archeological remains grace Ontiñena, perhaps making it an ideal place for the construction of up to 32 casinos with museums and themes ranging from Celtic, Egyptian and fourteen other historical eras.

After long delays caused by land purchase problems in Los Monegros, the area initially chosen, the €17 billion grand plans of International Leisure Development (ILD) look set to go ahead. Sixty-eight local landowners in the Ontiñena district now have signed agreements for the sale of 1,800 hectares, which together with the 1,200 hectares the municipality has made available is sufficient for the project to proceed.

The land issue has been laborious and entailed the purchase of 1,400 different parcels. The price settled upon is €8,000 per hectare irrespective of whether the land is barren or not. The contracts have been signed by ILD administrators Paul Stephan Allegrini, Pierre Louis Amancic and Sebastian Tranchant, and by the company legal representative Carlos Peralta. Present at the signing ceremony were Ontiñena Mayor Angel Torres and ILD CEO Mark Campbell. (E-02.11.09)

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