Operator News
South Africa – Latest closures in South Africa see Sun’s shares slide by nine per cent
By Phil - 29 June 2021
Casinos in South Africa will be forced to close again, following an announcement from South African President, Cyril Ramaphosa that due to an increase in infections of the Delta variant of COVID-19, casinos, gyms and fitness centers, nightclubs, restaurants (except for food deliveries and takeaways), conferencing exhibition, and entertainment facilities, must close their doors from June 28 until at least July 11.
The government will assess the situation again in two weeks.
Sun International’s share price dropped by almost nine per cent following the news.
The casino and hotel operator said: “All of Sun International’s restaurants and casino properties will be temporarily closed from today, in line with new Covid-19 regulations announced by the President last night. The group has also taken a decision to temporarily close its hotels and resorts, including Sun City Resort and Wild Coast Sun,” it added.
Sun International’s Chief Operating Officer for hospitality, Graham Wood, explained: “The new regulations require our casinos and restaurants to close, but given the new restrictions on leisure travel into and out of Gauteng, alcohol and the curfew, our hotels and resorts will struggle to operate, so we have taken a decision to temporarily close them too. We are mindful that government is concerned about the risk of transmission and the need to curtail the rise in new infections. However, these restrictions will have a further negative impact on our tourism industry, the thousands of people employed and the surrounding local communities,” said Wood.
“We remain hopeful that the worst of the latest Covid-19 outbreak will have subsided 14 days from now so that we can safely reopen our hotels, resorts and casinos,” he added.
