Marina Bay Sands opens
HIGH BIGATHOME ‘MBS chief makes bold prediction on Day One’
THE STRAITS TIMES | TUESDAY, MAY 11, 2010
By LIM WEI CHEAN AND NG KAI LING
Activities by ANDREW DUFFY
SINGAPORE’S second integrated resort (IR) opened on the dot at 3.18pm on April 27, and almost immediately, its Singapore chief made the bold prediction that it would attract 70,000 to 80,000 visitors daily.
The $7.5 billion Marina Bay Sands (MBS) opened for business after a simple ribbon-cutting ceremony at the hotel lobby by top executives from its parent company Las Vegas Sands (LVS), and the traditional lion dance for good luck.
The waiting punters, some of whom had been there since early morning, were quickly and efficiently ushered into the casino in small groups. There was none of the confusion seen at Resorts World Sentosa’s (RWS) casino opening in February, when queues stretched around the block and frustrated punters complained about shortages of food, drinks and toilets.
Mr Thomas Arasi, president and chief executive officer of MBS, made the bullish prediction that the IR would attract 70,000 to 80,000 visitors daily once it is fully open next month – outstripping RWS’ estimation of 13 million visitors in its first year, or 35,000 people daily.
LVS chairman and chief executive officer Sheldon Adelson, describing the Singapore casino as the company’s most valuable property with earnings forecast for US$1 billion (S$1.4 billion) in 12 months, predicted yesterday: “This is the future of gaming... This is a new model of entertainment.”
Gesturing around him during the main press conference in the hotel lobby, he said Singapore would depart from the traditional business model with the casino as hub. Integrated resorts, in which the gaming component forms a small percentage of the facility – less than 3 per cent in the case of MBS – and is part of a slew of attractions, are the future, he said.
No other project can offer such a wide variety of attractions under one “very long” roof, he said. On April 27, the Moshe Safdie-designed, 900,000 sq m resort opened 35 shops, 10 restaurants and bars, 963 out of 2,560 rooms, part of the convention centre and the public events promenade.
Restaurants by celebrity chefs Guy Savoy, Santi Santamaria and Tetsuya Wakuda also opened, with three others by Justin Quek, Wolfgang Puck and Daniel Boulud to be ready next month. Its hotel rooms, where rates start at $379, have been fully booked until May 6.
Mr Adelson said 85 per cent of the company’s earnings “will come from Asia once Singapore ramps up”. He added that he expected to recoup his Singapore investment in five years.
Together with RWS, Mr Adelson said, MBS will bring more quality visitors to Singapore and enlarge the pie for all. But he also made clear that the two IRs are rivals, and that he plays to win. With a grin, he declared: “I hate losing more than I love winning.”