Released 12/12/2018
Following due consideration, and in accordance with the ACT Government’s Investment Proposal Guidelines, the Government has notified the owners of the Canberra Casino, Aquis Entertainment (Aquis), that their unsolicited proposal to redevelop the Casino precinct cannot proceed in its current form.
The ACT Government has been engaging with Aquis on their proposal to redevelop the Casino precinct over the past few years. As part of this process, a legislative framework was put in place to allow Canberra Casino to purchase Electronic Gaming Machines (EGMs) authorisations from existing licensees. This process would have contributed to the overall reduction in EGMs in the Territory through mandatory forfeiture of authorisations.
The Legislative Assembly also placed a number of harm-minimisation requirements on Canberra Casino operating EGMs, including mandatory pre-commitment and $2 maximum bets.
Given these conditions that have placed on the proposal, as well as other considerations including the lack of detailed financial information from Aquis for the ACT Government to assess, Cabinet has determined that the current process is no longer a viable avenue to progress this proposal.
Aquis have been invited to consider a number of alternatives to progress a smaller scale casino redevelopment, and the Government will continue to engage with them and their representatives on the future of the precinct.
- Statement ends -
Andrew Barr, MLA | Media Releases
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