Economic Crisis
Due to the 2008 financial crisis, up to 11,000 construction workers are to lose their jobs as US gaming giant Las Vegas Sands cuts back its development in Macau. Stephen Weaver, Sands' president for Asia, said up to 11,000 workers will lose their jobs in Macau after the company halted building projects in the city. Developments of site no. 5 and no. 6 on the strip will be halted. Las Vegas Sands has focused its construction work on the Marina Bay Sands Resort in Singapore.
On 30 November 2009 the Las Vegas Sands corp announced it had secured $1.75 billion dollars to complete its Shangri-La, Traders and Sheraton Hotels, which were abandoned 65% complete in mid-2008. The 636 room Shangri-La Hotel, 1,200 room Traders Hotel and a over 2,000 room Sheraton hotel will open in June 2011. In December 2011 the Sheraton will open a further 2,000 rooms in another tower. The Sheraton will have 4,067 rooms. The St Regis Hotel might be completed in a further stage. Sheldon Adelson revealed it would take “a year and a half or so” to complete the new Cotai resort at plots 5 and 6 on 9 January 2011, meaning the sites will be completed by about mid-2012.
No information was released about Cotai Strip Sites 3, 7 and 8. These are very likely to be cancelled. Macao's director of the Lands, Public Works and Transport Bureau (DSSOPT), Jaime Carion, said on 5 December 2010, that the Government is now looking at developing non-gaming projects in Cotai. He stressed that the Sands China application procedure for plots 7 and 8 was not fully complete and the Government would announce the result at the most convenient time.
Galaxy Entertainment who is building Galaxy Macau has also stated that after having very slow construction in 2009, it will try to get its Cotai strip first phase development open for Q1 2011. Galaxy Macau was eventually opened on 15 May 2011.
Read more about this topic: Cotai Strip
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