Sun International recovers from Chile’s smoking ban

The smoking ban was implemented in Chile in March 2013 and had knocked one of Latin America’s best casinos, Monticello’s, revenue down by 22 per cent for the half year. Sun International Limited 0.07% which now has a 98.9 per cent stake in Monticello since July this year, therefore opened four new smoking decks in September and October, resulting in revenue growth of ten per cent for the second half of the year.

“The recovery in revenues in recent months and a comprehensive restructure of the business resulted in EBITDA (earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortisation) in the second half of the year increasing by 56 per cent to 9.5 billion Chilean pesos on last year at an EBITDA margin of 24.8 per cent, which creates a positive outlook for the year ahead,” said the group in a statement.

Total group revenue for the period increased by 5.4 per cent to 10.8 billion rand while EBITDA was up five per cent at 3.1 billion rand, reflecting a significant turnaround in the second half of the year in which revenue was up 7.4 per cent compared to 3.6 per cent in the first half of the year.

Adjusted headline earnings and diluted adjusted headline earnings per share both however declined by six per cent to 683 million rand and seven per cent to 655 cents respectively. A final dividend of 155 cents was declared, bringing the total dividend for the period to 245 cents, a decline from last year’s 265 cents.

In Sun International’s South African operations, Grand West Casino’s revenue increased by eight per cent to 2 billion rand while Sun City’s revenue was nine per cent higher at 1.4 billion rand with the casino division’s profits up 16 per cent to 519 million rand. Sibaya Casino’s revenue grew by five per cent to one billion rand while Carnival City’s revenue declined by two per cent to one billion rand due to increased competition from Electric Bingo Terminals and Limited Payout Machines. 

In the groups’ hotel operations, the Table Bay Hotel achieved revenue growth of 29 per cent to 233 million rand driven by a 40 per cent increase in international room nights sold which accounted for 73 per cent of rooms’ revenue.

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End all smoking in casinos

Casino company executives and industry experts recently met to discuss issues such as rapid expansion and competition in the regional gaming market at the 18th annual East Coast Gaming Congress, held in Atlantic City. Unfortunately, one item left off the agenda was a public-health issue of great importance: the thousands of workers and patrons being exposed to secondhand smoke inside Pennsylvania and New Jersey casinos. The time has come to move toward smoke-free casinos to create a healthier environment for employees and patrons.

Workplace exposure to secondhand smoke at places like casinos remains a top preventable cause of rising health-care costs, chronic disease, and premature death. In January, the U.S. surgeon general issued a report adding stroke to a long list of health effects caused by exposure to secondhand smoke. Exposure for as little as 30 minutes causes immediate effects on blood and blood vessels that raise the risk of a heart attack. In 2006, the surgeon general reported that there is no known safe level of exposure, and the only known way to fully protect health is to have 100 percent smoke-free indoor air.

A recent journal article by a senior scientist with the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention found that casino workers employed where indoor smoking is permitted have a significantly higher risk of heart disease, heart attacks, and lung cancer - even when smoking is limited to certain casino areas or when high-tech ventilation is employed. With about 50,000 employees working at Atlantic City casinos and those across Pennsylvania, this is a significant workplace safety issue. If the dangerous health impacts of exposure are not compelling reason enough for casinos to be smokefree, casino companies and state decision makers should consider the disadvantages of allowing secondhand smoke in Pennsylvania and New Jersey casinos when it comes to their regional gaming competition. Most casino patrons do not smoke, just as 82 percent of the U.S. population does not.

Casino expansion is heating up as nearby states compete for the same pool of patrons. A recent Econsult report to the legislature, "The Current Condition and Future Viability of Casino Gaming in Pennsylvania," suggests that while the state's casinos have made gains "cannibalizing" patrons from New Jersey, Delaware, and West Virginia, they are open to this same risk of losing patrons to Ohio, Maryland, and New York, which all have smoke-free casinos.

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