A business group in Omura (pictured), a city in the eastern portion of Japan’s Nagasaki prefecture, has expressed interest in an integrated resort (IR) concept, according to Nippon Television and other reports.
The reports said that Hitohisa Nakamura, the head of the Omura Chamber of Commerce & Industry, has asked Hiroshi Sonoda, Omura’s mayor, to be an advisor on a body referred to as the “Omura Bay Green IR Feasibility Study Promotion Council” due to be set up in August.
Per the reports, the mayor accepted the request and expressed his interest in proceeding with the discussion.
The business chamber plans to develop an IR concept for Omura, and suggest it to the prefecture by the end of the current calendar year.
According to media reports, the Omura Chamber of Commerce & Industry has made this move with the next IR application window of the national government in mind, i.e. between May 6, 2027 and November 5, 2027.
In 2024, a meeting organised by the Omura city branch of the Junior Chamber International – a worldwide organisation that promotes citizen engagement in economic and community matters – had expressed interest in Omura hosting an IR.
In 2021, before Sasebo had been selected as Nagasaki’s candidate location in the country’s first round of IR applications, Omura had been mentioned as a possible host site for a casino resort.
Omura city contains within its boundaries Nagasaki Airport, built on an island off the shore of Omura Bay, and a station of the Nishi Kyushu Shinkansen, part of Japan’s high-speed rail network.
Only Japanese prefectures and so-called ordinance-level cities are permitted to apply for the right to host an IR under the country’s casino liberalisation regime.
Although Nagasaki applied in the first round of bids, the prefecture learned in December 2023 that it had not been accepted, with the authorities citing doubts about the project’s funding.
The prefecture has given no public indication so far that it is interested in making a fresh bid.
The single successful candidate from Japan’s first round was Osaka prefecture and city. It is building with commercial partners MGM Resorts International and Orix Corp, the JPY1.51-trillion (US$9.49-billion currently) MGM Osaka, due to open in 2030.
