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MGM-Orix consortium proposes US$9.1 billion IR for Osaka

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In what is widely regarded as positive news by local observers, it has emerged that the MGM-Orix consortium is proposing a JPY1 trillion (US$9.1 billion) investment level for its Osaka Yumeshima IR.

While this investment level is somewhat less than the US$10 billion number that had been thrown around a couple years ago by then-competitors such as Las Vegas Sands and Melco Resorts, many had feared that changing conditions in the Covid era might lead to a much lower figure.

In terms of the timeline for opening, however, it has now been pushed back even further, with the proposal suggesting that business operations may commence sometime between 2028 and 2030.

This is the first indication ever that an IR development in Japan’s first round might not have its opening in the 2020s. The new plans apparently call for opening the Osaka IR in stages.

Included in the proposal is the consortium’s agreement with the local government’s demand that it bear JPY20 billion in costs for infrastructure improvement, in particular the extension of the Osaka Subway to Yumeshima island.

Earlier indications from company leaders were that both MGM and Orix would become equal partners, each with about a 40% stake in the consortium. Other local companies, yet to be revealed, are expected to fill out the final 20%.

The MGM-Orix consortium is to officially submit its proposal to the local government on Tuesday.

Michael Penn
Michael Penn
Michael Penn is a journalist and scholar based in Tokyo, Japan. As a journalist, he both writes print news articles and produces news videos. On the video side, he has several years of experience doing it all by himself: reporting the stories, shooting the video, and editing the packages. As a scholar, the bulk of his past publications have been about Japan's modern relations with the Islamic world.

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