Marina Bay Sands Pte Ltd has entered into a second amendment letter with lenders around a SG$8.7 billion (US$6.5 billion) facility agreement as it continues preparations for the expansion of its Singapore integrated resort.
Parent firm Las Vegas Sands said overnight that the amendment, which relates to a facility agreement originally dated 25 June 2012 and subsequently amended on 18 June 2020, extends by one year until 31 December 2022 the waiver period for the requirement for Marina Bay Sands (MBS) to comply with certain financial covenant provisions.
These include an extension until 31 March 2022 of the deadline for delivering the Quantity Surveyor’s Construction Costs Estimate and Construction Schedule for the MBS expansion project.
The SG$4.5 billion (US$3.3 billion) expansion will include development of a fourth hotel tower with a “rooftop attraction” including a sky pool and signature restaurant, MICE facilities comprising meeting rooms, function rooms and exhibition halls plus a state-of-the-art live entertainment arena with a seating capacity of at least 15,000 people.
MBS will also be permitted to install an additional 1,000 gaming machines, taking its total to 3,500, and convert the entire 55th floor of Hotel Tower 1 into more casino floor space with a provision to purchase another 2,000 square meters of casino gaming area if required.
Under the latest amendment to its facility agreement, MBS will be allowed to make unlimited dividend payments if the ratio of its debt to consolidated adjusted EBITDA is lower than or equal to 4.25 to 1, or up to SG$500 million (US$371 million) per fiscal year if the ratio of its debt to consolidated adjusted EBITDA is higher than 4.25 to 1, subject to additional requirements.
LVS revealed in July that it remains unsure whether it can meet its current 2025 deadline for completion of the MBS expansion due to delays as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, which has prevented the progress of certain works on the site through most of 2021.
