October 13, 2008 (InfoPowa News) — The Philippine government gambling company PAGCOR (Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corporation) has some ambitious plans to create a $15 billion Entertainment City to compete with the likes of Macau and Las Vegas, according to local press reports,
Rafael Francisco, the PAGCOR president, confirmed that the government had approved the project, and a start would be made on the construction phase early in 2009 at a 150 hectare site on reclaimed land.
PAGCOR's vision includes up to eight luxury hotels, theme parks, shopping malls, and gambling facilities that could ultimately create hundreds of thousands of jobs and stimulate major foreign investment.
The five-year project will be funded by the Philippine government and investors working through PAGCOR. Three major companies are apparently already interested in investing in Entertainment City — Japan's Aruze Corp., Alliance Global, and the SM Group of companies.