The deadline for submitting bids is Friday, January 10, and there is still nothing concrete.
Uruguay.- As the deadline to submit bids for the tender to operate the Hotel Casino Carmelo approaches, uncertainty and concern are growing. It is worth remembering that in November, the deadline for receiving projects was extended again until January 10, 2025, and with four days left until the closure, there are still no updates on potential interested parties.
It should be noted that the Ministry of Tourism confirmed that the reason for extending the deadline was to give more time to companies interested in participating in the process. Remo Monzeglio, Deputy Minister of Tourism of Uruguay, spoke exclusively with Focus Gaming News in December, after it was known that the investment group that had acquired the dossier in August, which enabled the submission of a project within the deadline that expired on November 28, withdrew from the call. Monzeglio detailed that the group, which had held a meeting with him in Buenos Aires, had shown very firm interest in the call.
However, at that time, the official had revealed that there was another investment group that might join the competition for the dossier. “When I received the call that the other group was not going to submit the project, we automatically extended the deadline until January 10, initially, and I contacted this group to let them know they could consider presenting. They sent a letter of intent expressing their desire to manage a hotel with a casino in Uruguay,” the official detailed.
Moreover, during the interview, Monzeglio referred to some points that could have delayed the project. On one hand, he explained that at this time, the situation of the new casinos is primarily to see if someday they will have the opportunity to access online gaming. Also, the official made a point to acknowledge that another event that occurred last weekend that cannot be overlooked are the presidential elections that resulted in Yamandú Orsi, the opposition candidate, winning. Lastly, the Deputy Minister of Tourism of Uruguay emphasized that the 10 groups that over these four years have expressed their interest in operating the hotel and casino, come battered by the pandemic.
“As far as I am concerned, until the last day that there is a possibility to move this project forward I believe we must keep insisting, the worst we can do is do nothing,” Monzeglio emphasized, who assured that he has “put his soul” into this project because his interest is for Carmelo to have an internationally rated hotel and to provide job sources.
See also: Hotel Casino Carmelo: the opposition criticized the tender
The call includes the sale of two plots, belonging to the Ministry of Tourism and where the hotel is located, and the concession to exploit gambling for 20 years renewable for the same term.
The alienation is conditioned to the construction, completion, and operation of a five-star hotel, while the casino license involves the payment of an annual fee, composed of a percentage of gross revenues.
The base price for the sale of the real estate plots N° 2.682 and N° 2.683 in the city of Carmelo (which consist of approximately 10,459 m2) will be 14,020,078 Indexed Units (USD2,126,720). It is worth noting that this amount will be converted to Uruguayan pesos at the exchange rate of the day before the public deed by which the transfer of ownership is to be made.
The terms of the contract may be consulted on the website www.comprasestatales.gub.uy and purchased up to 48 hours prior to the opening of bids at a price of USD10,000 through an online procedure.
