Genting Group announced on Monday that it acquired the unfinished Echelon casino-resort, located on the Las Vegas Strip, from Boyd Gaming Corp. for US$350 million in cash.
On the former site of Stardust Resort and Casino, Genting Group, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia will build the 3,500-room Resorts World Las Vegas, which will include a 175,000 sq ft (16,258 sq m) casino, 250,000 sq ft (23,225 sq m) of retail and 500,000 sq ft (46,451 sq m) of MICE space. The US$2 billion new casino-resort is expected to open in 2016.
The unfinished portions of the construction site will be incorporated into the casino-resort’s structure. Boyd Gaming Corp., Paradise, Nevada, stopped work on the US$4.8 billion Echelon in August 2008.
“Our highest priority is strengthening our balance sheet. The sale of the Echelon site is another important step in the ongoing effort to improve our long-term financial position,” said Keith Smith, president and CEO of Boyd Gaming. “While we remain committed to the Las Vegas market, we determined that developing a large-scale project on the Las Vegas Strip was not consistent with our current strategy.”