$341-M Cebu casino resort gets Pagcor green light

The state-owned Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corp. (Pagcor) has granted Udenna Development Corp. —the holding firm for companies engaged in petroleum, shipping, logistic and real estate—a provisional license to construct a $341-million integrated resort and casino in Cebu, the country’s gaming regulator said yesterday.

In a statement, Pagcor said Udenna, owned by Davao-based businessman Dennis Uy, would build the first ever integrated resort casino outside Luzon. The 12.5-hectare development will be named Lapu-Lapu Leisure Mactan as it will rise on a prime beach front on Mactan Island in Lapu-Lapu City.

Once constructed, the resort casino will put the country “at par” with other regional destinations designed for leisure; gaming; meetings, incentives, conventions and exhibitions (MICE), and other commercial and residential investments, the agency said.

“We are grateful for the confidence and opportunity given to us by Pagcor,” Uy said in the statement. “This approval is accepted with our commitment to the integrity and transparency demanded by the Duterte administration, our regulators and the broader gaming industry. This significant event is only the beginning of our vision of a globally competitive leisure, residential and commercial destination in Central Visayas.”

Lapu-Lapu Leisure Mactan’s location is a six-kilometer, 20-minute drive from the Mactan-Cebu International Airport, with views of Hilutungan Channel to the south and Magellan Bay to the north.

The master-planned property will feature modern buildings surrounded by greenery and infinity pools. It will also have a skydiving center on a pier, a commercial retail complex, convention center, luxury hotels, condotels, villas and plush private residences.

The development is seen to give residents and guests access to the longest stretch of beach front on Mactan, making it an ideal business and holiday destination of locals and guests.

“We’re very bullish on the tourism and hospitality prospects in the Philippines,” Uy said. “As shown by the leadership of the President, it’s high time that we invest in tourism and gaming.”

He added that with the large demand for manpower to be generated by the project, there would be better employment opportunities for locals.