Nagasaki gives Casinos Austria coveted gaming concession

Despite the political controversies in its home country, Casinos Austria has been awarded one the three highly priced licences to operate an Integrated Resort in Japan.

Nagasaki prefecture announced its decision in mid-August after a fierce contest between the Austrain group and two local firms: Oshidori International Development which came in second and NIKI Chyau (Parkview) Group in third.

However, more controversy has muddied the final stage of the bidding war, with Oshidori International withdrawing from the competition within days of the result, complaining about “restrictive and unreasonable rules” and suggesting that the process had not been conducted in an “ethical manner”.

All three firms presented their final proposals a week earlier, describing how they would develop and operate a IR at Huis Ten Bosch, Sasebo City. The decision was made based on which bid showed fairness and integrity.

“We would like to express our sincere gratitude to all entities who participated in our RFP at a time when the world had faced pandemic, and for their unique proposals that make use of their own experience and expertise,” said the Nagasaki Governor Hodo Nakamura.

“We also thank the members of the evaluation committee, each with their own perspective based on their area of expertise, who have taken the time to strictly evaluate the proposals.

“Going forward, our next course of action is to come to a master agreement with the priority negotiation rights holder. The prefecture will continue its efforts toward receiving national approval for developing an integrated resort in Nagasaki.”