Dubai World, the investment arm of the emirates' Government, has come up with a new plan to save the troubled Las Vegas CityCentre development, according to reports in the US. On Friday the Wall Street Journal said the Dubai company, a partner in the US$8.6 billion (Dh31bn) development, had agreed to fund the project through to completion. Citing sources close to the deal, the financial journal said Dubai World, MGM Mirage and a consortium of banks had committed to provide $3bn shortfall to complete the development.
MGM Mirage is the largest casino operator on 'the strip', and is controlled by the 91-year-old billionaire investor Kirk Kerkorian. The company has struggled to keep the project out of bankruptcy, as property financing in the US dried up. Earlier reports suggested Dubai World was reluctant to commit additional funds to the development, which will see a substantial remodelling of the central area of the city.
The CityCentre is to include a 67-acre hotel, condominium, shopping mall and casino precinct, and was conceived in the heyday of the US property boom. business@thenational.ae
