Aquis tables $307M Canberra casino makeover plan

Tony Fung’s Aquis Entertainment has made a case for an AUD307 million (USD228.84 million) plan to revamp the Canberra Casino.

The business case, which will expand the casino’s leisure and night life offerings, was submitted to the ACT government. This is the second step in the application process: the ACT government previously announced that Aquis’s concept submission “met all requirement of the first stage of the government’s investment proposal guidelines.”

Aquis acquired the Canberra Casino—a local gaming facility lacking a “wow factor”—for AUD 6 million in 2015, and immediately invested AUD14 million to give the casino a complete makeover. The two-stage revamp includes plans to build VIP and mass gaming facilities, six-star villa accommodation, a five-star hotel, retail food and beverage and a shopping mall. Aquis also eyes building a 3,300 square meter extension to the National Convention Center.

The casino operator is eyeing to lure additional 700,000 visitors annually with the casino overhaul, “shifting from a predominantly local catchment casino today, to one patronized more heavily by interstate and international tourists.”