After the plan of the Nagasaki Prefecture to launch an integrated resort development project was rejected by the Japanese Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism in December 2023, the Nagasaki Prefecture officials are reportedly concerned that any repetitions of the application process would face significant difficulties to get the Nagasaki IR project going forward.

IR Project Facing Obstacles:

As reported by GGRAsia, the recent meeting of the Nagasaki General Affairs Committee considered that the re-application process would be facing ‘’quite high hurdles’’ to conclude that the Committee would not appeal the governmental decision from December 2023. The Ministry’s December decision reportedly followed the submission of the Nagasaki’s IR District Development Plan made in April 2022.

According to GGRAsia, Tomohito Waseda, head of the prefecture’s planning department, and Takeshi Komiya, the head of the IR Promotion Division under the planning department informed that the competent Japanese Ministry’s decision provided for any respective appeals to be made by March 27, 2024.

Internal Plan Review May Lead to the Scratch:

GGRAsia reports that the Nagasaki prefecture has started the review of its IR plans. As the local authority reportedly advised that the review may be completed by the end of March, it may be assumed that the body has already started working to meet the deadline to appeal the Ministry’s decision. However, the body reportedly commented: “The prefecture alone cannot decide right now.” As for a new submission of the IR Development Plan, the local government body reportedly added: “Were the prefecture to make an application again, it should have to do all the IR work again from scratch. The hurdle is considered quite high.”

As reported by GGRAsia, the hurdles are high for the Nagasaki prefecture as the authority is not very optimistic about the Ministry changing the decision. The Committee reportedly stated: “It is very difficult for the [national] government to overturn its decision, because the government has huge discretion in judging such matters.”The prefecture body added that the repeated application process for the resort development “would take about a year,” as reported by the source.

$2.97Billion Fundraising Concern:

The pessimistic tone of the meeting held on March 13, 2024 substitutes the optimism of the prefecture about the submission of the plan to national authorities made in April 2022. According to the plan, the Nagasaki Prefecture intended to launch a luxurious casino and hotel facility in 2027 to generate around $2.3 billion in annual revenues for the southwest Japanese province. The development plan also included financial partners, such as Credit Suisse AG, CBRE, and private sector partners like Casinos Austria International Japan and Kyushu Resorts Japan. These partners were reportedly expected to raise around $2.97 billion in funds for the resort development.

However, the Japanese Tourism Agency – a part of the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism – rejected the plan in December 2023 over financing concerns for the project, reportedly stating that Nagasaki’s IR proposal “did not meet the required standards’’ set for the subject development.

Changing the Plan for Re-Application Purposes:

According to the remarks made during the meeting of the Nagasaki General Affairs Committee, the rejection has already brought some changes in the fundraising section of the plan.  “Kyushu Resorts Japan has lost the efficacy of the IR land purchase sale reservation contract and the commitment letters in fundraising, after the non-approval,” the prefecture reportedly said. As reported, the local authority also said that Kyushu Resorts ‘’had no intention’’ to appeal the Ministry’s decision.