Century Casinos Announces Racing Entertainment Centre and Race
Track Project in Calgary, Alberta, Canada
COLORADO SPRINGS, Colorado,
Dec. 3, 2012 /PRNewswire/
-- Century Casinos, Inc. (NASDAQ Capital Market® and Vienna
Stock Exchange: CNTY) announced today that its subsidiary Century
Casinos Europe GmbH ("CCE") signed credit and management agreements
with United Horsemen of Alberta Inc. ("UHA") in connection with the
development of a proposed race track and entertainment center in
Balzac, north metropolitan area of
Calgary, Alberta, Canada.
The proposed project would be the only horse race track in the
Calgary area and would consist of
a 5.5 furlongs (0.7 miles) race track and a Racing Entertainment
Centre, including a gaming floor proposing 625 gaming machines, a
bar, a lounge, restaurant facilities, an off-track-betting area and
an entertainment area. This Racing Entertainment Centre license is
the only license still available in any metropolitan area of
Alberta. This particular license
application pre-dates the AGLC recently approved three-year
moratorium on new Casinos and Racing Entertainment Centers, with an
option to extend the moratorium for an additional two years.
CCE has agreed to loan to UHA up to CAD
13 million (approximately USD 13
million based on the exchange rate in effect on December 3, 2012) for the exclusive use of
developing the proposed project. The loan has an interest rate of
LIBOR plus 800 bps, a term of five years and is convertible by CCE
into a 60% ownership position in UHA. The Company intends to
provide the loan to UHA with borrowings under the Company's Bank of
Montreal Credit Agreement.
Once the project is developed and operational and for as long as
CCE has not converted the loan into a majority ownership position
in UHA, CCE will receive 60% of UHA's net profit before tax as a
management fee.
Both the credit and management agreements are subject to
development approvals and licensing from the AGLC. UHA and CCE have
submitted the relevant applications already, but there is no
assurance that the needed approvals will be obtained or as to the
timing of such approvals. Horse Racing Alberta, the governing
authority for horse racing in Alberta, has already approved the project and
issued a license.
The proposed project would be located less than one mile north
of the city limits of Calgary and
4.5 miles from the Calgary
International Airport. The location is ideally positioned exiting
off the Queen Elizabeth II Highway, which is the main corridor
between Calgary and Edmonton and one of the most heavily used
highways in Western Canada, next
to the CrossIron Mills shopping mall, a major regional attraction,
and would capture both the north and the northwest Calgary markets, which do not currently have a
casino. The Company anticipates that the race track and
entertainment center would be completed 12 to 18 months following
completion of the approval process.
About Century Casinos, Inc.:
Century Casinos, Inc. is an international casino entertainment
company that owns and operates Century Casino & Hotels in
Cripple Creek and Central City, Colorado, and in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada and the Century
Casino in Calgary, Alberta,
Canada. The Company also operates casinos aboard twelve
luxury cruise vessels (Regatta, Nautica, Marina, Riviera,
Mein Schiff 1, Mein Schiff 2, Wind Surf, Wind Star, Wind
Spirit, Seven Seas Voyager, Seven Seas Mariner and Seven Seas
Navigator). Through its Austrian subsidiary, Century Casinos Europe
GmbH, the Company holds a 33.3% ownership interest in Casinos
Poland Ltd., the owner and operator of eight casinos in
Poland. The Company also manages
the operations of the casino at the Radisson Aruba Resort, Casino
& Spa in Aruba, Caribbean. Century Casinos, Inc. continues to
pursue other international projects in various stages of
development.
For more information about Century Casinos, visit our website at
www.centurycasinos.com. Century Casinos' common stock trades on The
NASDAQ Capital Market® and the Vienna Stock Exchange under the
symbol CNTY.
This release may contain "forward-looking statements" within
the meaning of Section 27A of the Security Act of 1933, as amended,
Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, and
the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These
statements are based on the beliefs and assumptions of the
management of Century Casinos based on information currently
available to management. Such forward-looking statements include,
but are not limited to, future results of operations, operating
efficiencies, synergies and operational performance, economic
improvements in 2012 and plans for our casinos and our Company.
Such forward-looking statements are subject to risks, uncertainties
and other factors that could cause actual results to differ
materially from future results expressed or implied by such
forward-looking statements. Important factors that could cause
actual results to differ materially from the forward-looking
statements include, among others, the risks described in the
section entitled "Risk Factors" under Item 1A in our Annual Report
on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31,
2011. Century Casinos disclaims any obligation to revise or
update any forward-looking statement that may be made from time to
time by it or on its behalf.