Studio City granted extended construction deadline beyond gaming license

Macau’s government has granted Studio City International Holdings Ltd a seven-month extension to its land concession contract for its integrated resort Studio City on Cotai — several months past the property’s current expiry date.
The news was announced by the group’s statement released on May 5.
Given official permission, the deadline for the development period under Studio City’s land concession contract is postponed from May 27, 2022 to December 27, 2022. The gaming license for the group is due to expire on June 26, 2022.
The extension is intended to buy the group more time to complete Studio City’s Phase 2 expansion project.
The postponement seems to be of great benefit to Melco Resorts & Entertainment, the group’s largest shareholder, which had previously stated that it would be quite unlikely to meet the proposed deadline for the Phase 2 construction on May 31, 2022.
In an SEC filing dated July 7, 2020, Melco ascribed the construction delays to the Covid-19 outbreak.
“With the disruptions from the Covid-19 outbreak, the construction period [of Phase 2 of Studio City] has been delayed and is expected to extend beyond the estimated 32 months and the current development period,” Melco stated in the release.
According to the financial result for 2020 released by Melco in March this year, the construction of Studio City Phase 2 “is progressing.”
Upon completion, Phase 2 of Studio city will offer around 900 luxury rooms and suites — approximately a 60% increase to Studio City’s current hotel room inventory. It will also provide “one of the world’s largest indoor/outdoor water parks”, a cineplex, restaurants, and MICE venues.
The new water park is slated to open on May 22.