Malaysian group to reopen sprawling hotel and casino on Samal Island

Written by Manuel T. Cayon | Reporter

DAVAO CITY—A Malaysian conglomerate has plans to reopen its sprawling hotel in the Island Garden City of Samal, sending fresh hopes of propelling tourism in the Davao region. The intent was indicated to the Mindanao delegation to the East Asean growth area meeting in Brunei Darussalam last week. In a report from the recently-held BIMP-Eaga meeting, Secretary Jesus Dureza, Presidential Adviser on Mindanao Affairs, said the Malaysian owners of Samal Casino Resort in Samal had signed an agreement with them to open again its hotel project. BIMP-Eaga stands for Brunei, Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines-East Asean Growth Area. “The Ekran Berhad Sdn, a Malaysian conglomerate that owns a chain of big hotels in Malaysia, will reopen its Ekran Berhad Samal Casino Resort in the Island Garden City of Samal [IGaCoS],” Dureza said in a message relayed to the Mindanao Economic Development Council, a copy of which was obtained by the BusinessMirror. Dureza said the discussion and signing of the agreement was made at the sidelines of the 18th Senior Officials and Ministers’ Meeting and 14th Ministerial Meeting in Brunei last week. The Philippine-Mindanao delegation was composed of Dureza, Samal Mayor Aniano Antalan, Davao del Norte Rep. Antonio Lagdameo, who chairs the House Committee on BIMP-Eaga Affairs, and officials of the Department of Tourism (DOT). The Malaysian delegation was represented by Tan Sri Datuk Ting Pek Khiing, executive chairman of Ekran Berhad Sdn. Dureza said that Ekran Berhad “also planned to work on mounting flights between Davao and Kota Kinabalu, in partnership with Malaysian Airlines to coincide with the reopening of the resort.” The airlines closed its Davao route in the late 1990’s due to the heavy and lingering effect of the Asian financial crisis in 1997. “We’re putting back on track the P1.5-billion Ekran Berhad investment in Samal,” said Dureza, who is also the Philippine signing minister in the BIMP-Eaga. “This is an indication of a sound business environment in Mindanao and across borders, there is now an opportunity to reconnect in the south.” Lagdameo told a press briefing in Malacañang that the hotel was an old project “but it had to close.” He said Davao business and government leaders have been bridging talks with the Malaysian investors to reopen the hotel several years ago “and we’re hoping that we can get them back before the end of the year.” A concrete timetable is hoped to be set before the Eaga leaders’ summit in October, he said. DOT Mindanao coordinator Undersecretary Merly Cruz, also a senior Philippine official in the BIMP-Eaga, said the Malaysian conglomerate’s plan to resume operations in Samal was based on a sound business decision. “In their view, the business environment in Mindanao is now satisfactory.” The Ekran Berhad opened only 245 rooms in 1998, from a planned 1,400-room resort, before it closed in 2001 after reeling from the Asian financial crisis. The resort and hotel sprawls on a 250-hectare area and includes a planned golf course. Before it closed, Michael Ting Se Ping, then the general manager of the resort and at the same time vice president of the family-owned Ekran Berhad Services that operates several hotels and resorts in Malaysia, said the company was poised to construct the P200-million golf course and wanted to infuse P700 million for the other expansion activities. These include the opening of another 300 rooms. The company later called off plans for a public offering and closed operations completely.