MGM likely to focus on remodels on scale of Monte Carlo, CEO says

MGM Resorts International is done building new casinos in the U.S. and will likely spend future development dollars on remodeling its Strip properties in the same way it’s remodeling Monte Carlo, the company’s CEO says.

In a recent earnings call, MGM Resorts CEO Jim Murren said that with the exception of a potential casino in Japan, the company was largely finished building new resorts.

“Cotai (MGM’S newest Macau property) is on the horizon, opens in January,” Murren said. “And Springfield, Mass., will be the home of our newest property, and our last major development project here in the United States when it opens in September. Jim Murren, chairman, MGM Resorts International

“And that really winds down our development cycle,” he added.

If there are larger new projects, Murren indicated they would be in Las Vegas. “Where we’re focusing our capital is where we dominate, which is here, and obviously, in Las Vegas,” he said.

The template for those projects will probably be the rebranding and remodel of the Monte Carlo.

In June 2016, MGM announced it would be “reimagining” the Monte Carlo, and spending $450 million to create two new hotels in one building: Park MGM, a 2,700-room luxury hotel tied thematically to MGM’S outdoor space, the Park; and Nomad, a separate smaller hotel with 292 guestrooms and suites, its own lobby, swimming pool, casino and restaurants.

Murren said many of the new venues already were open and he expected the full conversion to be finished by the end of 2018. He also said results from the work finished so far had been good.

“When we have opened venues, and we’ve only opened a few new ones, they’ve been profoundly successful,” he said. “A