PH RESORTS Group Holdings Inc., the gaming and tourism holding company of the Udenna Group, is in talks with one foreign and one local investor to complete and open its flagship Emerald Bay project in Lapu-Lapu City, Cebu in the near future.
In a disclosure to the local bourse on Friday, July 28, 2023, PH Resorts president and chief executive officer Raymundo Martin Escalona assured its stakeholders that the company will make the necessary disclosures at the appropriate time.
"PH Resorts is also presently engaged in the final stages of negotiations with one foreign and one local investor to help it fulfill its commitment to complete and open its flagship Emerald Bay integrated resort at the soonest possible time," the company said.
Billionaire Enrique Razon Jr., through Bloomberry Resorts Corp., was supposed to invest in the company's Cebu and Clark casino projects but withdrew from the deal on May 6, 2022, after considering the results of due diligence on the company and its projects. Davao-based Dennis Uy owns PH Resorts Group. Bloombery Resorts Corp., on the other hand, is engaged in amusement, tourist facilities, gaming and hotel businesses.
Emerald Bay is a US$300 million project envisaged to be the premier integrated resort in the Visayas-Mindanao region.
To be developed by Lapulapu Leisure Inc., the 13.5-hectare Emerald Bay Resort Hotel and Casino is located in Barangay Punta EngaƱo, Lapu-Lapu City.
The first phase of Emerald is expected to have approximately 7,585 square meters of aggregate gaming floor area, with approximately 1,186 electronic gaming machines, approximately 146 gaming tables, a five-star hotel, with approximately 838 rooms, including five villas, a retail complex covering an approximate area of 8,000 square meters, a convention center, and 18 restaurants.
In October 2021, Uy delayed the opening of its first hotel casino project in Mactan, Cebu to the first quarter of 2023 due to mobility restrictions caused by the Covid-19 pandemic.
The resort and casino project as of end-September 2021 was 40.7 percent complete while the main building was 98.6 percent finished.
In his President's Report, Escalona said while 2022 continued to be a challenging time for the company, there were some bright spots that PH Resorts will focus on to maintain positive momentum.
Among these were the reopening of the Donatela Resort & Sanctuary in Bohol last December, as well as having advanced discussions with other parties in monetizing some assets that are currently not generating any cash flows.
But the company, he said, is still suffering from net losses as of the the first quarter of 2023.
Despite the challenges, Escalona remains hopeful for the future.
Eight of the nine members of the board of directors of PH Resorts were reelected. Raouf Kizilbash was elected as the ninth member of the board. The company maintains having three independent directors. (KOC)