Supplier News

Chile – Enjoy’s licence extended in city of Pucon

By Phil - 7 January 2016

The City Council of Pucon has approved the two-year licence extension for the casino run by Chilean operator Enjoy.

The property will remain under the operation of Enjoy until December 31, 2017. This is the deadline set by new rules which extend the term of the municipal casino licences while the biding process for the new licences are under way.

General Manager of Enjoy SA, Gerardo Cood welcomed the decision and highlighted the significance that the Casino de Pucon has had for the company in the past. He also expressed an interest in participating in the bid to renew the license from January 1 2018. “Our aspiration is to continue to contribute to strengthen the lakeside area as a destination on an international level,” he said and went on to say that the company wishes to maintain the number of casinos it currently operates in Chile. He also confirmed the company’s willingness to renew its licenses in both Coquimbo and Vina del Mar. The municipalities of both communities also recently approved the extension of the Enjoy casino licences for the next two years, while the bidding processes take place for the municipal casinos.

Mr. Good confirmed that Enjoy was working “energetically to present the best projects for each location, because we feel we have a commitment to the communities where we operate.”

Referring to the upcoming tender he added that: “Beyond each operation and the contribution that Enjoy casinos account for when it comes to the budget of each municipality, we have been a key factor in the development of tourism and employment. All this makes us look with optimism at this process.”

President Michelle Bachelet signed into law new regulations last year, which extend the licenses of the seven municipal casinos. The new rules extend the licenses until December 2017 in the districts of Vina del Mar, Arica, Iquique, Puerto Varas, Coquimbo, Pucon and Puerto Natales, which all expired on December 31, 2015.

However, once these licences expire the statute provides that from that date onwards, those municipalities will continue to be a home to a casino for a total of three periods of 15 years each and the new casinos will come under the supervision of the SJC. The awarding of the municipal licences is the biggest development in Chile for years and will herald in a number of new large scale casinos especially as a number of the municipal casino licenses, such as the licence for Vina del Mar, are located in the most popular local tourists destinations.