Following a series of accusations for the Queensland casino laws violations, and the financial issues resulting in extensive lay-offs, the Australian gaming corporation Star Entertainment is facing another problem. As InQueensland reports, the casino giant’s vulnerability has recently been proven by another delay of its Queen’s Wharf project in Brisbane.
April 2024 Launch:
The company reportedly unveiled that its ambitious $3 billion development project, set to open in late 2022, will not be launched before April 2024. As InQueensland reports, the latest delay is the additional extension of the timeline anticipating the opening in December this year. Even the push-back to December would reportedly imply a staged opening as the supply chains established before the Covid-19 pandemic has now been disrupted to request additional planning and time schedule adjustments.
Blaming Contractor:
According to the source, the construction works for the Queen’s Wharf project have been assigned to Multiplex as the leading contractor and the latest postponement of the project completion is reportedly the contractor’s responsibility. Star reportedly said the project leaders gathered around the Queens Wharf consortium, known as Destination Brisbane, decided to push the opening timeline forward after they had reviewed the progress of the construction works.
Star chief executive Robbie Cooke reportedly complained that the project sustains the same type of pressure as other major construction projects. “We are disappointed, but this transformational development for Brisbane has been eight years in the making already and it will be worth the wait,” he reportedly said.
List of Problems:
It seems that it would be better the project is worth waiting for as the company doesn’t seem to have much time to wait to get back on track. Indeed, the shares of Star Entertainment reportedly sense the pressure from the delayed project as the $800 million fundraising project has been slowed down for weeks.
According to the source, Star’s shares fell 2 per cent on June 6, 2023 to add some more weight to the company’s half-year loss of $1.3 billion. But that’s not all, as the operator is still facing fines from the gaming regulator, after it had paid the two $100 million fines to two Australian provinces’ governments for money laundering non-compliance.
Ray of Light:
The Star’s statement that some parts of the Queen’s Wharf project, i.e., several dining, entertainment, and gaming areas have been completed and the keys received by the company sheds some light on the gloomy company’s prospects.
Star reportedly said: “The third and final sky deck bridge section was moved into place on Friday June 2, allowing the sky deck lift and connection to take place in coming weeks. The completed sky deck will connect all four towers of the Queen’s Wharf development and signify a further milestone in the project’s progression.”