Limassol Casino Contracts Imminent

A temporary casino will open in Limassol until the multi-million Euro casino opens for business in 2020

General Wednesday, 22 February, 2017

CYPRUS should get its first casinos later this year when the Melco-Hard Rock consortium, comprising Melco-Hard Rock and Cyprus Phassouri (Zakaki) Limited, signs contracts later this month.

A temporary casino will open in Limassol in October 2017 and will operate until the multi-million Euro casino, which will be built next to My Mall at Zakaki, opens for business in 2020.

The coordinating committee expects to complete its due diligence checks in the next few days and submit its report to the Council of Ministers (Cabinet).

After the contracts have been signed, the National Gaming and Casino Supervision Commission will issue the consortium with the appropriate operating licences.

The licence will allow the consortium to operate a casino license for 30 years (as a monopoly for the first 15), while the group plans to build and operate a luxury 500-room hotel offering up to 1,000 slots as well as 100 table games and four satellite casinos and three slot-machine parlours.

If all goes according to plan four satellite casinos will open in July 2017, the largest will be in Nicosia with 50 slot-machines and 5 gaming tables. The three slot-machine parlours will open in Paphos, Larnaca and Famagusta districts. The precise locations for these satellites and parlours has yet to be determined.

The projects are expected to create thousands of jobs with a capital investment in excess of €500 million.

Hard Rock International has venues in 71 countries, 168 cafes, 23 hotels and 11 casinos. Beginning with an Eric Clapton guitar, Hard Rock owns the world’s greatest collection of music memorabilia, which is displayed at its locations around the globe. The company owns, operates and franchises cafes in numerous cities including London, New York, San Francisco, Sydney and Dubai. It also owns, licenses and/or manages hotel/casino properties worldwide. Destinations include the company’s two most successful Hotel and Casino properties in Tampa and Hollywood, as well as other locations including Bali, Chicago, Cancun, Ibiza, Las Vegas, Macau and San Diego.

Cyprus Phassouri (Zakaki) Limited (“CPZL”), is a member of the CNS Group which, amongst others, conducts different businesses including real estate, telecommunications, dairy, large scale farming and export and mining in Cyprus. The group has a chain of hotels in Greece and the AKS Annabelle Beach Resort on the Greek island of Crete.