PH Resorts Group Holdings Inc., the listed gaming unit of Davao businessman Dennis Uy, on Tuesday announced the termination of the sale of its Cebu gaming operations by the business that operates Okada Manila.
The company said Tiger Resort Leisure and Entertainment Inc., which operates Okada Manila, told PH Travel and Leisure Holdings Corp. in a letter dated 1 July, that the term sheet they signed only the previous December had been terminated.
Tiger Resort at the time planned to acquire a majority of PH Travel subsidiaries Lapulapu Leisure Inc. and Lapulapu Land Corp. that operated the Emerald Bay in Mactan, Cebu.
They were to have executed a definitive agreement this month under that term sheet.
“We understand that the Okada Manila operator no longer intends to pursue the Emerald Bay acquisition. Nevertheless, this development shall give PHR the opportunity to engage with other parties that have already expressed their keen interest in the Emerald Bay Project but have been unable to formalize due to the restrictions under the TRLEI deal,” company president Raymundo Martin M. Escalona said.
“We assure our shareholders and stakeholders, however, that management is already working toward another transaction, be it an acquisition, joint venture, or otherwise, that will ensure the completion of the Emerald Bay Project,” he said.
The resort in Mactan Island is planned as an integrated resort with a five-star hotel adjacent to 300 meters of beachfront, two 15-storey towers accommodating 642 rooms, four pools, 18 food and beverage outlets, retail spaces, conference and exhibition facilities and a large-scale gaming floor with more than 700 electronic gaming machines and 140 gaming tables.
