Genting Singapore Poised to Begin Upgrade of Resorts World Sentosa

Resorts World Sentosa is poised for an upgrade following plans by Genting Singapore to revamp it. The upgrade is set to commence later this year and will take close to two years to complete.

With the concerns over COVID-19 beginning to reduce, Genting Singapore is now poised on a mission they announced almost three years ago. In exchange for its duopolistic control of gambling both in Singapore, along with Las Vegas Sands, Genting Singapore will then go ahead and give Resorts World Sentosa (RWS) resort a facelift.

The Resorts World Sentosa is getting a makeover.

Back in 2019, Genting Singapore announced that it was going to pump close to US$3.34 billion into Resorts World Sentosa, an international gaming destination. But COVID-19 halted everything. Even though the virus remains a threat, there’s no other better time than to begin upgrades now. Less human traffic at the resort means reduced interference and increased freedom to get the facelift done.

Part of the makeover plan will see Genting Singapore spending close to $287 million in upgrading three hotel facilities (Festive Hotel, Hotel Michael, and Hard Rock Hotel Singapore) at the RSW. Set to commence in the second quarter, it will continue for the next two years.

“In all our developments for RWS 2.0 and major refurbishment works … we are acutely aware of the need to embody into our design a more sustainable environment. We are engaging various stakeholders and consultants to incorporate the latest technology and research to achieve this goal,” said Genting Singapore in a filing with the Singapore Exchange.

Additional upgrades at the facility will consume an additional $287 million, including the remodeling of the Resorts World Convention Centre and more.

COVID-19 Negatively Impact Net Profit

While issuing updates on the commencement of renovations, Genting Singapore also issued a report on its financial health. They said that for the second half of last year, the net profit dipped by 49% due to reduced traffic brought about COVID-19.

For the six months ending December 31, the net profit fell to SG$95.1 million (US$70.63 million) in comparison with SG$185.9 million (US$138.06 million) in the same period last year. Genting Singapore further reiterated that their revenue for this period was also on the lower side, standing at SG$12.5 million (US$380.63 million). Compared to last year, this is a drop of 17%.

The report further said that an increase in safety management measures contributed to the decline of revenues. For instance, measures such as reduced human contact and a ban on dining in-hand have a “profound negative impact” on both visitor and operating traffic.

Gaming revenue reduced 16% year-on-year to SG$359.7 million (US$267.15 million) during the second half of 2021. But on the other hand, the firm reported a rise of non-gaming revenue by 2% to SG$147.2 million (US$109.32 million). Based on this, the company directors went ahead to propose a final dividend of SG$0.01 (US$0.0074), not having changed over a year ago.

Over the course of the year, the group’s total revenue climbed modestly. Revenue for the fiscal year 2021 increased to SG$1.067 billion (US$792.24 million) from SG$1.064 billion (US$790.23 million) the previous year. Net profit increased by 165 percent to SG$183.3 million (US$136.13 million).

From SG$0.0057 (US$0.0042) a year ago, earnings per share climbed to SG$0.0152 (US$0.011) in 2021. As of December 31, 2021, the group’s net asset per share was SG$0.654 (US$0.49). This is a rise from the previous rate of SG$0.649 (US$0.48).

Genting Singapore is optimistic that the tourism sector will soon improve for the best, especially following the relaxation of COVID-19 regulations, along with the uptick of vaccinated travel routes. Over the next two years, they expect a gradual return of visitors, with operators hoping to take advantage of this opportunity to come up with new visitor offerings while refreshing existing ones.