Several casino licenses are up for grabs in Queensland, as the local government wants to open five new integrated casino resorts across the state. While there are plenty of opportunities available across Queensland, most local operators are interested in opening venues in Brisbane. SkyCity has recently entered into the running for a casino license in the state capital, competing with Echo Entertainment and Crown Resorts.

According to the Canberra Times, SkyCity CEO Nigel Morrison has expressed interested with the Queensland government. He has until February 28th to submit a bid, and is not entirely sure whether or not he will do so; however, he is interested in the possibility of opening an integrated casino resorted in Brisbane. Should SkyCity win the bid, the casino operator will have big shoes to fill.

Both Echo Entertainment and Crown Resorts have announced that they would spend a minimum of $1 billion on the Brisbane casino development – but SkyCity could certainly compete. The casino operator has spent the past year proving that it has the capital to spend what it takes to make its casinos great.

At the moment, SkyCity is spending $350 million on renovations to SkyCity Adelaide and $400 million to build Auckland’s new convention centre. All three casino operators have strong points, so the competition will be fierce. Although Echo Entertainment has seen disappointing profits in 2013, the company already operates the Treasury Casino in Brisbane and is the most experienced operator in the market.

Crown Resorts, on the other hand, operates plenty of successful venues across Australia and has recently won a license to run a high roller casino in Sydney, effectively terminating Echo’s monopoly on the city. By the beginning of February, we will know exactly how each operator plans to proceed with their bid for a Brisbane casino license.

We will keep you updated as the story develops.

About the Author

George Anderson
Author George, has over 25+ years’ experience in the Pokies and Casinos industry throughout Australia and New Zealand. Loves to research new Pokies games on the block and follows announcements from top industry providers about their upcoming releases. As soon as a new interesting pokie game appears on his radar, George is there to check it out and give you the scoop before anyone else and tell you about all casino sites where can play the latest game. Before this gig, George worked as Pokie game tester, making him an ideal candidate for this genre of work. He is also an animal lover and a proud owner of three dogs.