Vol. XXI, No. 204 [ Business World Online ]
Monday, May 19, 2008 | MANILA, PHILIPPINES
LISTED LEISURE and Resorts World Corp. (LRWC) will co-develop with the Cagayan Economic Zone Authority a P4-billion international airport in Sta. Ana, Cagayan to facilitate easy travel for its casino clients, while boosting domestic tourism up north.
In a talk with reporters, LRWC President Alfredo B. Benitez said the company would be participating in the project by donating the land and by using internally generated funds, as well as loans.
He said the company would provide a 79-hectare property for the development, 40 hectares of which will be devoted to the airport and the rest to other air-related facilities.
LRWC, through subsidiary First Cagayan Leisure and Resorts Corp., operates an online casino business inside the Cagayan Economic Zone. Its players, mostly represented by proxies, come from Macau via chartered flights arranged by the company.
It started carrying players on an 80-seater jet plane late last year with flights every Thursday and Saturday.
"The company has been positioned to tap the international market, and slowly but surely we’ll bring them to the Philippines, creating more employment and generating more revenues for the government," Mr. Benitez said.
He said their clients are also tourists who will be contributing to the local economy through their spending.
The company is looking at introducing flights every Tuesday and Friday from Xiamen, China pending the approval of the Chinese government, Mr. Benitez said.
"When the airport is done [two-and-a-half years from today], revenues may easily jump threefold," he pointed out.
LRWC’s business in the Cagayan province contributes about 40% to the company’s consolidated net income.
For the first quarter, the company’s net profit declined by 5% to P39.3 million due to higher interest expense.
LRWC was incorporated on Oct. 10, 1957 as Atlas Fertilizer Corp. and engaged in fertilizer and industrial chemicals production. When the company acquired AB Leisure Exponent, Inc. (ABLE) as its wholly owned subsidiary in October 1999, LRWC extended its business to professional bingo gaming through Bingo Bonanza Corp.
ABLE’s bingo parlors have become community and entertainment centers, a source of revenue for the government — Lovely Nica P. Lee
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