Australian media mogul and big-time gambler Kerry Packer is seeking to set up a casino on Taiwan's outlying Penghu archipelago once the government approves legalizing the industry.
Cheng Chang-fang (鄭長芳), deputy Penghu County Commissioner, told the Taipei Times yesterday that Packer's Publishing & Broadcasting Ltd (PBL) had contacted the commissioner to discuss establishing a casino in the area.
Cheng's remarks confirmed a report in The Australian newspaper yesterday that claimed PBL had approached Penghu officials about establishing a casino.
The report also said executives from Melbourne's Crown Casino -- which is a wholly owned subsidiary of PBL -- had been briefed about pursuing opportunities in the Asian market.
Australian casinos stand to lose 50 percent of their Asian high-rollers if licensed casinos begin operating in Taiwan and perhaps later in Japan and Singapore, according to The Australian.
Packer, who is one of Australia's richest businessmen with a passion for high-stakes gambling, is not alone in his desire to invest in East Asia.
Su Kun-hsiung (蘇坤雄), speaker of the Penghu County Council and chief of the Penghu Tourism Association, confirmed that executives from both MGM Mirage and the Venetian Resort Hotel Casino from Las Vegas have also expressed interest in establishing casinos in Taiwan.
But as foreign firms queue up for a chance to lay their chips on the table, the government is yet to decide on whether to allow casinos on the tiny chain of 64-islands that lie between China and the main island of Taiwan.
The Cabinet is currently reviewing an inter-ministerial evaluation of proposed legislation that would permit the construction of casinos and both Su and Cheng believe that a decision isn't too far off.
Su said that while the general leaning of the Cabinet is to approve the legislation, he was cautious on giving a definite timetable for its passage, saying that revisions to the Offshore Island Development Law (
Other observers say that no solid action will be taken by lawmakers until after the year-end elections. Others say that administrative revisions to the criminal code may take considerable time to implement.
Su says that as long as investors are confident that the law will be revised, foreign developers will begin to invest in hotel projects that can be expanded into casinos.
RSS