Reef Hotel Casino Renovations Cost Casino $3M in Profits

The Reef Casino Trust has revealed that extensive renovations to the Reef Hotel Casino in Cairns have cost them almost $3 million in profits, bringing down their total distributable profits from $15 million in 2015 to $12 million in 2016.

According to Allan Tan, executive director of the Reef Casino Trust which owns the property of the casino and Pullman Hotel, despite the drop in profits due to the renovations, the hotel operation would perform strongly.

The renovations caused disruptions on the ground floor which reduced entertainment options and had a more significant impact on electronic gaming than the operator had anticipated. The majority of reduction in profits was due to the closure of the Vertigo Bar, although Bar 36 which opened in November has already begun to produce revenue. Performance of the gaming tables remained solid and in fact increased in 2016.

The renovations will be mostly completed by the end of 2016, with the majority of work done by Christmas and the remainder completed by the Chinese New Year in January. The $6.5 million upgrade will provide a more competitive product to their customers who will be able to enjoy more modern facilities.

“Our major renovations will be largely completed by the end of the year and we can look forward to our new facilities on the ground floor of the complex providing an even more competitive product to our local and international patrons and customers,” said Mr Tan.

Nearby businesses will also enjoy the completion of the renovations with Cafe China restaurant owner Harry Sou saying that the last six months of renovations next to his business had been “challenging”, but that they are looking forward to their completion by January 16 for the Chinese New Year.