Ho Tram to be the pinnacle of entertainment

Lloyd Nathan

The United States’ Pinnacle Entertainment has acquired a 26 per cent equity interest in Asian Coast Development (Canada) Ltd. (ACDL), the owner and developer of the Ho Tram Strip beachfront complex of destination integrated resorts and residential developments in southern Vietnam. ACDL chief executive officer Lloyd Nathan tells VIR’s Song Ngoc about the acquisition and the project’s progress.

ACDL has already joined hands with MGM for developing the first resort in Ho Tram Strip complex. Why did you choose Pinnacle Entertainment for the second resort?

We enjoy a tremendous relationship with MGM and as you can see from the weekly images on our website, construction is moving ahead rapidly on the MGM Grand resort and we are on track to open in the first quarter of 2013.

Pinnacle was selected for the second site for a variety of reasons.  First and foremost, it is philosophically aligned with us in terms of bringing something of value to Vietnam and its people.  It is also a first class operator and it has always been our intent to bring ‘best in class’ companies to the Ho Tram Strip to create a compelling global destination.  The Ho Tram Strip will ultimately include five, 5-star hotels, the MGM Grand Ho Tram and the Pinnacle development will be the first two.

You want to start operating the complex in 2013. Is this plan still feasible?

The 2009 global financial crisis obviously presented challenges for developments around the world, as does the current instability in the global economy.  But we never gave up. We weathered the storm where others gave up and will continue to do so.  I am delighted to tell you that our site is proceeding to plan and we remain on track to open the first resort in the first quarter of 2013.

Good infrastructure is very important to the success of an integrated casino and resorts complex. For Ho Tram Strip, which is quite far away from airports, how will this factor negatively impact on its attraction?

Any country growing at the rate Vietnam is growing faces infrastructure challenges. However, both the national government and the provincial authorities in Ba Ria-Vung Tau have been exceptionally supportive with their commitments to the Ho Tram Strip zone. 

While current infrastructure enables a very large amount of visitation from Ho Chi Minh City to Ba Ria-Vung Tau, significant improvements that will further benefit access to the Ho Tram zone are occurring as we speak.  Each time I visit our site I see improvements on the main road connecting Ho Chi Minh City and Ba Ria-Vung Tau.  When the new airport in Long Thanh opens, access will be further improved and we are also looking at other modes of transport including ferry links. To put it into context, we have a 164 hectare site with over two kilometres of pristine beach front forming part of a tourist master plan within 125km of a major metropolis.  We are also the only current large-scale integrated resort destination authorised and under construction in Vietnam.

We will offer something unique to our future visitors and they will have a variety of means to come and enjoy what we will be offering.

The Vietnamese government is restricting the number of casino projects, while some other similar projects to yours have hit delays or were scrapped. Is this to your advantage?

Having had the privilege of engaging with governments throughout the world regarding integrated resorts, it is clear that the Vietnamese government is very knowledgeable in this area and is also well versed in the competitive dynamics within Asia. Jurisdictions that have attracted large scale investment and created compelling destinations have practically always restricted the number of licences.  For example, in Singapore it restricted the number to two licences as well as creating a 10 year exclusivity period for each licence holder. That left a number of operators disappointed but it was the best outcome for Singapore.

As I mentioned earlier, while many gave up, we weathered the storm. We are determined to deliver something of immense value to Vietnam. As for advantages, our location is second to none on a number of levels. We also have the advantage of best in class partners, including Harbinger Capital, Pinnacle Entertainment, MGM Resorts International, Steelman Partners and several others.

With the cooperation with Pinnacle Entertainment, when do you expect to start the construction of the second resort?

Planning will occur in the near term for the second resort and, after the opening of the MGM Grand Ho Tram, it is expected to achieve full-scale construction. It is also expected to be similar in size and scope.