Gaming Wynn Resorts says UAE site will earn $1bn in gaming revenue By Valentina Pasquali October 9, 2024, 4:14 PM Wynn Wynn Al Marjan Island is now expected to 'pre-open' in the first quarter of 2027 and cost $5.1bn RAK resort ‘rapidly advancing’ UAE is the ‘most exciting market’ Wynn Al Marjan Island costs $5bn Wynn Resorts estimates that gaming revenue from its forthcoming resort in Ras Al Khaimah will be between $1 billion and $1.66 billion, it revealed at an investor presentation. The range assumes a UAE market size of $3 billion to $5 billion and Wynn’s 33 percent share of it, based on two more integrated resorts eventually licensed in Dubai and Abu Dhabi and a maximum of one per emirate. After Wynn secured the UAE’s first gaming operator licence from the General Commercial Gaming Regulatory Authority last week for the Al Marjan Island resort, it pitched investors and analysts in Las Vegas on Tuesday about the project’s progress. The global hospitality and gaming giant has casinos in Las Vegas, Boston and Macau and is looking to expand in New York. Wynn Al Marjan Island is now expected to “pre-open” in the first quarter of 2027 and cost $5.1 billion, the 99-slide presentation revealed. That is $1.2 billion higher than previous estimates. The company said it plans to contribute $1.1 billion in equity, with $900 million of that still left to spend. It is raising a $2.4 billion debt facility that it says is already “oversubscribed with strong demand from local and international lenders” and should close by the year’s end. Wynn’s “significant land bank” in the UAE should support “continued long term development,” according to the presentation. The company acquired 70 additional acres of land on Al Marjan Island in August. Wynn scores UAE’s first commercial gaming licence Wynn’s update on RAK casino has analysts abuzz Casino operator Wynn buys more land in Ras Al Khaimah In a report in June, the real estate consultancy CBRE predicted that the UAE gaming industry could ultimately yield upward of $8.5 billion in revenue. Wynn is building the resort, and obtained the gaming licence for it, as part of a consortium that also includes RAK Hospitality Holding and Al Marjan Island LLC. “Wynn Resorts has a 40 percent equity ownership in the joint venture,” the company said in the presentation. “[It is the] first instance of Wynn Resorts getting ‘paid for what we know’ with attractive management and licence fees, akin to a luxury hotel brand management agreement.” Given the UAE’s location, airport infrastructure and growing appeal for affluent foreign tourists and residents alike, Wynn expects the Al Marjan Island property’s non-gaming hospitality, retail and food and beverage offering to boost income. The presentation in one instance uses the word “casino”, which UAE authorities and Wynn Resorts officials have been reluctant to do, even in the press release announcing the licence last week. The company’s chief executive Craig Billings told analysts in 2022 that the new integrated resort in Ras Al Khaimah would include a casino. The document also cites a 2023 survey conducted by Wynn whereby 90 percent of respondents in the UAE and 81 percent across the GCC found integrated resorts “acceptable either for me or others”. That is slightly lower than 94 percent approval in India and 95 percent in “core Europe”.
