INCHEON ― Mohegan Sun, a casino and entertainment complex operator based in Uncasville, Connecticut, signed a memorandum of understanding with the Incheon International Airport Corp. on Tuesday for a resort development project on Yeongjongdo Island, Incheon, which is also home to the airport.

Under the MOU, the company will invest in a two-phase development project in IIAC’s International Business Center II area, the airport operator said in a press release. The project, which will be completed by 2040, is estimated to cost around 5 trillion won ($4.6 billion) in total.

The first phase, requiring around $1.6 billion investments, is aimed at building a foreign-only casino, a six-star premium hotel and a 20,000 seat-arena for a variety of entertainment or sports events. 


“The planned integrated resort, located to the northwest of the Incheon Airport, will have a geographical advantage in that it can target the 400 million Northeast Asians who live in cities three hours’ flight away from Yeongjongdo,” IIAC CEO Park Wan-su said before the signing event.

”We are very excited to bring our know-how and expertise (in hospitality) to Korea,” said Kevin Brown, chairman of the Mohegan Tribal Gaming Authority, Mohegan Sun’s parent company.

Mohegan Sun, led by Native American tribe Mohegans, has built a world-class reputation in gaming and non-gaming ventures by running integrated resort properties in states such as Connecticut, Pennsylvania and New Jersey.

As the next step in its push for the mega-development project, the U.S. casino operator said it would set up a Korean corporate branch by the end of next month and develop a business proposal to win a license for an integrated resort business in Yeongjongdo from the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism by the end of this year.

Regarding project financing, the U.S. firm said it would talk not only with U.S. banks but also local partners.

By Seo Jee-yeon (jyseo@heraldcorp.com)