Saipan’s Commonwealth Casino Commission (CCC) has called on the government to put an end to the exclusivity of any casino license issued on the CNMI island in the future, no matter the outcome of a recent arbitration hearing between the regulator and current license holder Imperial Pacific International (IPI).
CCC Chairman Edward C Deleon Guerrero told his colleagues during a meeting this week that “I do not think exclusivity at this point in time is in the best interest of the Commonwealth,” suggesting instead that the CNMI might consider other licensing models once the current impasse with IPI is resolved, Marianas Variety reports.
Arbitration talks between the CCC and IPI wrapped up in Hawaii last week, with IPI fighting to avoid having its license revoked for failure to pay its mounting licensing and regulatory fees for the past three years. The company is arguing that it has been unable to do so because it was forced to close and ultimately had its license suspended during the COVID-19 pandemic.
According to the CCC Chairman, Public Law 18-56 needs to be revisited to allow for multiple licenses to be awarded, while IPI, assuming it proves successful when results of the arbitration proceedings are announced, should give up exclusivity.
Referencing the need to quickly find a casino investor when IPI was first awarded its license in 2014, Deleon Guerrero said, “The clock was ticking back then, and the best and most expeditious way to save the Retirement Fund was to offer an exclusive casino license to entice an investor to invest as quickly as possible.”
Fast forward nine years and “we have matured enough to realize that such a particular setup is probably not in the best interest of the Commonwealth,” he added. Should arbitration result in any sort of settlement that might allow IPI to reopen its Saipan casino, “IPI should give up exclusivity.”
The majority owner of IPI, which has claimed to be looking for new investors into its troubled casino, Imperial Palace‧Saipan, recently said she was keen to “go back to the table” with regulators and “bring a new beginning” for the company.
“All we want is to reopen the casino so we can start to contribute again to the CNMI economy,” said Cui Lijie – who holds a personal 60.69% stake – in March. As previously reported by IAG, the CCC had been seeking more than US$25 million in back payments from IPI, representing around a quarter of the US$100 million it currently owes.
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