Caesars Entertainment Plans Development of NAIA Terminal 2

There are bright lights shining these days at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport. However, they're not the runway landing lights but rather the lights of Las Vegas entertainment magnates, eagerly seeking to develop the areas bordering the country's primary international gateway. It began with Resorts World across from NAIA Terminal 3, and now another major entertainment corporation is ready to step in and develop property near NAIA Terminal 2. 

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US-based Caesars Entertainment Corporation, the largest American casino operator, made famous by its Caesars Palace property in Las Vegas is seeking to develop a $1.5 billion integrated casino-entertainment centre next to NAIA's Terminal 2. The planned development is expected to draw 3.5 million visitors annually to the Philippines, more than half of what the entire country attracts at present.

According to officials at Caesars Entertainment Corporation, the Philippines has much more to offer than Macau. "Macau blossomed into a behemoth because it allowed all the major global players to operate there,"said Steven Tight, Caesars Entertainment's President for International Development. "Each operator spent huge sums to market Macau. It will be the same with the Philippines, which actually has more to offer and should be a better destination."

Tight noted that Macau has grown at a rapid pace now boasting more than forty casinos with six times more revenue than Las Vegas. Although the Philippines is targeting gaming investments, the Philippine Government remains divided over the entry of another casino giant. President Aquino indicated in October that the Department of Tourism supports the proposal, while the Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corporation is against it.

Caesar's Entertainment is targeting a thirty hectare government property that has primarily been idle. The company hired foreign experts to assess the re-design of the Ninoy Aquino International Airport to connect Terminals 1 and 2 with light rail transit. 

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The foreign experts also indicated that there are ways to raise the number of flights on the existing runways. According to Tight, this would be accomplished through the construction of a new control tower with technologically advanced equipment that is able to guide aircraft from as far as 150 miles away, instead of the current 50 miles, which should enable more take-offs and landings.

In addition, the consultants are recommending that additional high speed exits be constructed in order for aircraft to immediately clear the runway after landing, which would give way to the next aircraft to either take off or land.

If the project pushes ahead, it is expected to create 20,000 jobs in the Philippines, establishing the country as not only a casino destination, but a major tourist destination. "There are sectors that are saying that Caesar's Entertainment would not be valuable to the gaming industry and the country revenue-wise," said President Aquino. "But there are also those who say that Caesars is a brand name that kind of tells the world that we have arrived."