HANOI: Vietnam’s Ministry of Finance is proposing an investment policy for a 51.5 trillion dong (US$1.98 billion) luxury casino complex in the north-eastern province of Quang Ninh, home to Unesco World Heritage Site Ha Long Bay, VnExpress International news website reported.
The proposal was submitted to Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh, it said, citing information from the ministry.
The project would be built in Van Don district of Van Yen commune, and the ministry proposes allowing Vietnamese citizens to take part in casino gaming at the resort under a pilot programme, the report said. Last year, the government renewed a decree allowing some citizens to gamble at select casinos on a trial basis.
Of the total investment, 7.7 trillion dong would be supplied by an investor, with the remainder financed through bank loans, according to the report, citing information from documents submitted to the State Appraisal Council.
The ministry recommended the Quang Ninh provincial People’s Committee be authorised to select an investor, according to VnExpress. The complex would be built in three phases, with the first completed in about 2027 with an estimated investment of 25.1 trillion dong, it said.
Quang Ninh province had approved Sun Group as the sole investor in a Van Don casino, according to a 2017 statement on the provincial government’s website. - Bloomberg
