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Karl Stagno-Navarra
Government is adopting a cautious approach to a private enterprise proposal for the setting up of an underwater casino in St Paul’s Bay.
So far, the plans for such a casino have been thrown out by government after the project’s backer, the Cala Corporation, failed to provide serious proof of financial standing.
Speaking to MaltaToday, tourism minister Francis Zammit Dimech accused the US-based company of not showing any evidence of due diligence or feasibility indicators. While Cala Corporation executives said last November that the Maltese government had been “dragging its feet” and “taking its time in coming to a decision”, Francis Zammit Dimech insisted that in the absence of such vital information, the proposal could be given no consideration.
However, following the minister’s strong worded comments, Cala Corporation have returned with an assurance over financial reliability and feasibility.
“At the moment I am adopting a wait-and-see approach in the hope that they would come back with something more serious than just an idea. Moreover we must understand also that an underwater casino would also be a planning issue to be dealt with accordingly by MEPA,” minister Zammit Dimech said.
The project was to include a casino with around 100 table games and 800 slot machines which would cover an area of about 60,000 square feet. Cala Corporation said last month that it had secured a 70 per cent financing agreement with Credit Suisse for the project.
ksnavarra@mediatoday.com.mt
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