Operator News
Andorra – More details emerge regarding tender in Andorra
By Phil - 27 November 2017
More details have emerged regarding how the new casino licence will be awarded for the single casino, which will be permitted in Andorra, located on the border between France and Spain.
The maximum score that each offer can reach will stand at one hundred. According to The Andorran Gaming Control Board (CRAJ), operators must first show the availability of land, building or premises for the casino and show that it must have at least 2,000 square meters for the public, not including terraces and outdoor spaces. Once this has been established the board, along with other government bodies, will award points based on a number of key criteria.
A maximum of ten points will be awarded based on the architectural design and if the building is to be used exclusively for the casino and its complementary services. In addition, up to five points will be awarded on the casino’s location with the highest score being awarded to those proposals located in a central location with the highest concentration of tourist services available.
Fifteen points will also be awarded on the quality of the proposed project, its integration into the landscape, safety, sustainable design, the number of parking spaces as well as the surface area of the casino and the quality of the catering services on offer. Meanwhile CRAJ will award a maximum of ten points when it comes to the economic guarantees that the project will be able to bring. Specifically, one point will be awarded for each additional €350,000 that are allocated to the project of up to a maximum of five additional points; a point will also be given if 10 per cent of the shares of the property are offered locally while another fifteen points will be allocated to assess the economic benefits the casino will bring.
Ten points will be used to assess the generation and quality of jobs alongside the Ministry of Social Affairs while the Ministry of Tourism will be in charge of evaluating the impact the project will have on the local tourism industry. In addition, CRAJ will award up to ten points based on the past experience of the casino operator as well as the quality of the games which will be on offer as well as the admission and control procedures of the casino. Up to three points will be awarded if the operator has a social responsibility and responsible gaming plan in place.
Finally, seven points will be awarded to the offer that proposes the shortest period for the opening of the casino to the public – a criteria that will be assessed by the Ministry of Territorial Planning.
In 2013, the government first gave the go ahead to a single casino licence. Casinos had until then been banned from the Catalan-speaking country, which operates as a tax haven. In January 2015, the legislative committee of Andorra completed the draft of a bill that paved the way for a land-based casino and online gaming. The Minister of the Presidency, Antoni Riberaygua, said at the time that the opening of the gambling market in Andorra would be achieved gradually and expressed his hope that the addition of a casino would boost tourism to the principality, which has over 10m visitors each year.
