Japan’s central government has approved an implementation agreement drawn up by Osaka Prefecture and the MGM Resorts consortium for an integrated resort development on Osaka’s Yumeshima Island, paving the way for a formal agreement to be signed within the month.
Minister for Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism, Tetsuo Saito, announced the approval on Friday after Osaka Prefecture submitted a revised agreement on 8 September. This revised agreement pushes back the originally planned opening date by one year to 2030 and increased the expected initial investment by around US$1.3 billion to JPY 1.27 trillion (US$8.60 billion) as a result of soaring prices for construction materials.
With approval now secured, it is expected that Osaka and its preferred IR partner – a consortium led by MGM Resorts and local firm Orix – could sign the implementation agreement within this month. Once signed, the consortium is expected to begin ground liquefaction countermeasure work during the current autumn with construction of the main facility to begin around spring of 2025.
Once complete, the IR is projected to include 2,500 hotel rooms across three hotel brands, 730,000 square feet of MICE space and tourism facilities to showcase the best of Osaka and Japan.
