Las Vegas Sands has selected a Madrid suburb as the site for EuroVegas—the largest investment in resort development in the history of the continent.
Alcoron, located about 13 kilometers southwest of the Spanish capital, will host the US$35 billion, 750-hectare complex which, if all goes according to LVS’ current plans, will feature as many as six casinos, more than 1,000 gaming tables and 18,000 slot machines and an array of leisure attractions, including three golf courses, nine entertainment venues and at least 3,000 hotel rooms in four resorts LVS will build itself.
President and COO Michael Leven has announced that the company has $3.6 billion in place for its share of the first phase, which is slated for completion by 2017. In all, the company estimates it will take 15 to 18 years to finish the entire complex, for which LVS will provide about 35% of the financing.
EuroVegas was hotly contested between Madrid and Barcelona, with the capital city finally winning out as the location in September, and it enjoys the support of the governments of the recession-wracked nation, where unemployment has soared to 26%, highest in Europe.
The “goal is to make Madrid the international reference point for conventions, fairs, exhibitions and leisure in Southern Europe,” said Ignacio Gonzalez, president of the regional government.
The development is being looked to for the creation of some 164,000 direct jobs and another 97,000 indirect jobs—about half the region’s total unemployed—and an ultimate boost to local GDP of 4.5%.
Spain is Europe’s third-largest gambling market, according to PricewaterhouseCoopers, surpassed only by Germany and France.
RelatedPosts
