NZ's SkyCity to pay additional casino duty of about $7 mln on Adelaide operation (updated)

Skycity Entertainment

16/10/2024 02:08

(Adds details and background from paragraph 3 onwards)
       Oct 16 (Reuters) - New Zealand's SkyCity Entertainment
 SKC.NZ  said on Wednesday it now expects to pay an additional
casino duty of A$10.3 million ($6.87 million) to January 2024 in
relation to its Adelaide operation.
    The statement came after a decision by the High Court of
Australia on SkyCity Adelaide's appeal against the South
Australian Court of Appeal's judgement on the interpretation of
the provisions in the Casino Duty Agreement dated Oct. 27, 1999
between SkyCity Adelaide and the Treasurer of South Australia.
    The High Court confirmed that credits on gaming machines
arising from the conversion of loyalty points when played by
customers are to be included in the gaming revenue for
calculating casino duty at the SkyCity Adelaide casino. 
    "As at 30 June 2024, SkyCity had not recognised a provision
in relation to the potential exposure to penalty interest as
there remain a range of potential outcomes and no present
obligation exists," the company said in a statement. 
    In August, the casino operator warned of an estimated A$86.2
million impairment charge on its Adelaide assets, citing costs
to implement a rule on mandatory identity-based play.

($1 = 1.4993 Australian dollars)

 (Reporting by Echha Jain in Bengaluru; Editing by Alan Barona
and Subhranshu Sahu)
 ((Echha.Jain@thomsonreuters.com))