Macau on track in January

Friday, Nov. 1, 2002 | 11:13 a.m.

A day after breaking ground on his Le Reve resort, Steve Wynn today disclosed plans to break ground on a casino in the Chinese island city of Macau in January.

Wynn said his interest in Macau was prompted by the massive market potential surrounding the Chinese resort city.

Fellow Las Vegas gambling entrepreneur Sheldon Adelson, owner of the Venetian resort on the Las Vegas Strip and its attached Sands Expo Center, was chosen by the Macau government along with Wynn to develop casino resorts in Macau.

While Adelson will target the huge market in China and all of Asia to bring conventions to his Macau casino resorts, Wynn appears to be more interested in the potential of developing Asian gamblers in Macau.

Wynn said in the casino at the only hotel that currently has gambling, the Lisboa, 115 baccarat tables generate $1.5 billion in revenues every year and that demand is so great that the tables are constantly busy.

By comparison, all of Las Vegas' baccarat tables generate $600 million in revenues a year, he said.

"The wait is four deep, every day of the year," Wynn said. "That's a casino with no shows and no special architectural features."

Wynn said when he arrived in Macau to sign documents giving him a license to operate, many Chinese gamblers recognized him and chanted his name and the Las Vegas name.

That experience, he said, affirmed for him that the Chinese market is ready for a Las Vegas-style experience.