Genting Berhad's US$4.3 billion Resorts World Las Vegas (RWLV) is "on track" to open its doors in the Nevada gaming hub, in the United States on June 24, 2021.
RWLV will open 56 years after the group's first resort-gaming centre in Pahang, Malaysia.
Genting has grown from a modest beginning with a 200-room hotel in Genting Highlands to a global player operating diversified businesses in over 10 countries across three continents.
In addition to the leisure and hospitality business, its businesses include property development, power generation, and leisure cruising.
RWLV will feature 3,500 guest rooms and suites, 350,000 sq ft of meeting space, 117,000 sq ft of gaming floor space, and a 5,000-capacity theatre, among others.
The development will integrate three of Hilton's premium brands into its resort campus in partnership with Hilton Hotels & Resorts. The brands include Las Vegas Hilton, the resort's full-service brand; Conrad Las Vegas, Hilton's lifestyle luxury brand; and LXR, Hilton's network of independent luxury properties, which will operate as Crockfords Las Vegas, Genting's internationally renowned ultra-luxury brand.
RWLV president Scott Sibella said in a statement recently that the multi-billion ringgit development will redefine the hospitality standard in Las Vegas with unmatched dining and entertainment, more variety of hotel accommodations on the strip, and the city's most progressive technology.
Sibella also said RWLV hopes to play a role in Las Vegas's rebound after an incredibly challenging year for the destination and greater hospitality industry as the global economy contended with Covid-19 pandemic-driven movement restriction policies to curb the pandemic.
RWLV sits on a 35.2-hectare site on the north strip in Las Vegas.
Genting acquired the site on which the legendary Stardust Casino once stood for US$350 million (RM1.44 billion) in 2013.
The Stardust was demolished in 2007 by Boyd Gaming Corp to be replaced with the US$4.8 billion Echelon Place project.
A groundbreaking ceremony for Echelon Place occurred on June 19, 2007, however, the project was abandoned a year later when the recession kicked in.
RWLV is currently one of the largest hotel construction sites in the US, reportedly with over 3,000 construction workers on-site daily.
The resort centre was initially slated to open in 2016 but was delayed several times due to design changes followed by a legal dispute with Wynn Resorts, which filed suit against Genting, claiming RWLV was similar to its own Wynn Las Vegas and Wynn Encore, located just across the Strip.
It was reported that the two companies settled out of court after Genting presented new design changes that resolved the matter to Wynn's satisfaction.
Profitable venture from FY24
RWLV is tipped by Nomura analysts to add six per cent to Genting's 2022 earnings before interest, taxation, depreciation, and amortisation (EBITDA) but will remain loss-making at the net profit level for at least a few years.
Taking into account revenue estimates for the coming years based on the gaming data of 24 nearby casinos located on and around the Las Vegas Strip, the analysts estimate revenue of US$350 million and EBITDA of US$82 million in 2022, rising to US$477 million and US$112 million respectively in 2023.
However, at the net profit level, given the depreciation/interest costs, they expect RWLV to remain loss-making in the initial years.
According to Fitch Ratings Inc, RWLV could reach fully ramped-up EBITDA by the end of 2024.
RHB Investment Bank Bhd analysts Loo Tungwye and Lee Meng Horng said in a note last month that they expect the venture to register losses in the initial years but it should be able to achieve positive EBITDA by FY22 given the steepening of the vaccination curve and Genting's proven track record globally.
They said the LA Strip is a competitive but profitable location, with a total of 60 unrestricted gaming licences.