KEY POINTS:
SkyCity is to build a A$50 million ($62.6 million) tropical resort in Darwin.
The beachfront site is next to the company's casino in Darwin, and will include accommodation, entertainment and recreational facilities.
SkyCity chief executive Nigel Morrison said the Northern Territory was a growing national and international tourist destination, and one of the fastest growing economies in Australasia.
A A$30 million revamp of the Darwin casino is due to be finished at the end of the year. "We want to see Darwin become a resort destination in its own right, not just a gateway to other destinations," SkyCity Darwin's general manager Andrew Wilson said.
SkyCity bought the Darwin casino in 2004. It sits on 8.5ha, of which 2ha is an outdoor entertainment area.
On the other side of the casino the local government owns a 5.5ha of beachfront land. It put the land up for tender for a tropical resort to be developed. SkyCity won the tender 18 months ago but has had to fight several battles with local residents over beach access and a creek to get an agreement in place.
The agreement will see the 2ha it uses for outdoor events used to build the resort while the Government land will be used for outdoor entertainment events. "It has been a bit of a drawn-out affair," Wilson said.
Work on the site will start by developing the public entertainment area to ensure it is ready in time for the casino's 2009 annual black-tie lawn ball.
The resort area will then be covered in shell to raise it up slightly and construction is to start in 2010.
Final designs for the resort have yet to be completed but will include at least 100 villas, adding to the 120 hotel rooms already available at the casino.
The resort is expected to open in May 2011 at the earliest.
Wilson said the Darwin casino and hotel had experienced high demand for its rooms, particularly in the dry season of May to September, and the resort extension would allow it to cater for more visitors. He hoped the expansion would allow SkyCity to attract more business from South-east Asia.
On Friday, SkyCity announced it would retain its poorly performing cinema business after a possible buyer failed to arrange the right financing.
Morrison said then he believed the asset, the country's largest cinema business, could be run profitably, even though its value was written down by half to $60 million in February.
SkyCity's share price yesterday closed down 11 cents at $3.57.
- Additional reporting, NZPA
